


The Most Sparkling Diamond

by Takara_Phoenix



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan
Genre: Anal, Bottom!Leo, Bottom!Percy, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, M/M, Multi, Oral, Past Child Abuse, Past Rape/Non-con, Pegging, Polyamory, Rental Love, Shounen-ai, Slash, Threesome - F/M/M, Threesome - M/M/M, Twisted Canon, whore!Percy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-07-20
Updated: 2014-07-25
Packaged: 2018-02-09 17:16:25
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 45,859
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1991181
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Takara_Phoenix/pseuds/Takara_Phoenix
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The gods exist, our demigods are the kids of their canonical parents, but instead of Romans and Greeks living separated, there is one big city where all demigods can live in peace. Also, the two Great Prophecies never happened.<br/>Now the demigods who have been raised in peace and never faced a war before get their first prophecy. They have to fight a war, but for that war, they first need to track down the only living children of the Big Three who aren't already living in the city of Olympolis. To do so, they send the children of the Big Three that they already have.<br/>Bianca and Thalia take some of their friends on the quest to find the last child of the underworld that is said to be somewhere out there.<br/>Jason and Nico go on their own quest and with their own back-up to find the only child of Poseidon.<br/>Hazel has been on the run all of her life, most of it with her best friend and boyfriend Frank and then some strangers start chasing them. But those strangers have a cute Latino with them.<br/>Unlike Hazel, Percy has no idea that he is a demigod. Then again, he has more important things to deal with. His stepfather Gabe has pimped him out for years now. But will Jason and Nico give him what he deserves?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue: Welcome to the Purple Oyster!

Title: The Most Sparkling Diamond – To Search and to Find

Fandom: Percy Jackson and the Olympians / Heroes of Olympus; kind of AU

Disclaimer : All rights reserved to Rick Riordan for he created the awesomeness that is Nico di Angelo. And everything else related to Percy Jackson and the Olympians / Heroes of Olympus. Aside from the Gods, they belong to the old Greeks. This fanfiction and its OCs on the other hand are entirely mine. No money is made with this, though reviews are more than welcomed.

Warnings: shounen-ai, hetero, threesomes, rental love, explicit intercourse, anal, oral, pegging, mentions of rape/abuse, past child abuse, AU, shoujo-ai

Main Pairing: LittleBigThreesome, Frazeleo

Side Pairings: Jason/Nico (established), Frank/Hazel (established), Luke/Leo, Octavian/Percy, Malcolm/Katie, Jake/Will, Kayla/Nyssa, Kinzie/Phoebe, Reyna/Piper/Annabeth, Charles/Silena, Thalia/Bianca, Ethan/Alabaster, Luke/Octavian, Chris/Clarisse, Lou/Miranda, Shane/Lacy, Michael/Calypso, Tyson/Ella, Grover/Juniper, Gleeson/Mellie, Chiron/Lupa

Percy Jackson Characters:

 _Purple Oyster_ : Perseus Jackson, Annabeth Chase, Piper McLean, Drew Tanaka, Lacy Hunnigan, Mitchell Logan, Silena Beauregard, Charles Beckendorf, Gabe Ugliano

 _Search for Percy_ : Nico di Angelo, Clarisse la Rue, Lou Ellen, Jason Grace, Chris Rodriguez, Reyna Avila Ramírez-Arellano, Shadowchaser (Nico's pegasus stallion), Fighter (Clarisse's pegasus stallion), Wicca (Lou's unicorn mare), Trickster (Chris' pegasus stallion), Tempest, Scipio

 _On the run_ : Frank Zhang, Hazel Levesque, Arion

 _Search for Hazel_ : Leo Valdez, Luke Castellan, Bianca di Angelo, Thalia Grace, Alabaster C. Torrington, Ethan Nakamura, Balance (Ethan's pegasus mare), Mrs. O'Leary, Festus

 _Still in Olympolis_ : Chiron, Lupa, Howard Claymore, Gleeson Hedge, Mellie, Grover Underwood, Juniper, Tyson, Ella, Rachel Elizabeth Dare, Octavian Simmons, Malcolm Cage, Katie Gardner, Miranda Gardner, Travis Stoll, Connor Stoll, Jake Mason, Will Solace, Austin Barton, Kayla Hein, Nyssa Black, Hylla Avila Ramírez-Arellano, Kinzie Cohen, Zoe Nightshade, Phoebe Burge, Sherman Potter, Mark Meyer, Lee Fletcher, Michael Yew, Clovis Daver, Butch Knightley, Castor Liber, Pollux Liber, Dakota Elle, Shane McNabb, Christopher Clark, Harley Davis

Summary: This is an AU-story, but it's not a total AU. It still takes place in a universe with the Roman and Greek gods, all the characters we know and love are still children of their representative godly parents. But the two Great Prophecies never happened, none of the two wars happened and instead of visiting separated summer camps, all half-bloods live in a sheltered safe haven called Olympolis, where they actually live pretty normal lives with going to school, shopping, everything you need to be a regular teenager. If a demigod decides to live in Olympolis, they get to stay in special apartment buildings, where demigods live in rooming arrangements with each other. The city is protected by the magic of the gods, just as camp borders are. And aside from the average quest now and then, they actually live in peace.

At least until now.

A threat – older and more powerful than the Giants or Titans – emerges as the children of the oldest deity fight. The gods wish to keep out of the fight between Hemera and Nyx, but the older deities want to pull the demigods into their fight, to use them in their war. At first, no one is worried, because the demigods are safe in Olympolis. But then Poseidon and Pluto admit each having another child out there. So the four children of the Big Three, who already are living in Olympolis, are send out with the most powerful demigods of the city to search for those two forgotten half-bloods. What dangers and adventures await them? And can love bloom in the middle of a war?

 

 

 

**The Most Sparkling Diamond**

_ To Search and to Find _

 

Prologue: Welcome to the Purple Oyster!

 

It was a normal, calm evening in the Purple Oyster, which translated to the establishment nearly bursting with people, all kinds of eager customers in all different states of drunkenness. Such evenings were the best, because many bystanders who desired to watch the show meant less time for private sessions. A black-haired beauty hummed cheerfully at that as he strode through the Purple Oyster, his hips swaying in the faint rhythm of the song played by the band. His name was Percy, though most around here knew him under an alias, just as the other dancers. He handed out drinks left and right and tried to ignore the customers who occasionally squeezed his behind.

“What in the world are we doing here, di Angelo?”, growled an aggravated blonde, sipping his beer.  
The black-haired boy jumped slightly at the voice. Not so much because it was louder than others, no everyone here was screaming and shouting, but because it was pleasantly bossy and dark. He curiously turned around, his sea-green eyes staring at the blonde who had spoken. Blinking and tilting his head, he observed the blonde and his olive-skinned companion.

“You, love”, chuckled the olive-skinned one, judging by his accent Italian, next to the blonde. “Are obviously getting wasted. I'm doing our job.”

Their job? Percy tried to come closer to them while still handing out alcoholic beverages.  
“Our job is to look for a-”, the blonde leaned in to hiss into his friend's ear. “You-know-what! Not to look at... you-know-whats!”

A you-know-what? Such a curious conversation. Most people visiting the Purple Oyster certainly did not come because they wanted to do business and most conversations were only about big boobs, round asses and long legs and how much they wished to have the needed money to get a piece of those. But oddly enough this couple did not seem very interested in the displayed dancers. It made something within Percy itch, but that was due to his nature. His friends always claimed that he was like a cat – not just in grace and beauty, but that he would also one day get killed by his own curiosity. He just couldn't help it, his life was dull and boring, he had never seen anything outside the city and for years now he had scarcely even left the Purple Oyster. He wanted so much more out of life. Wanted to feel the hot sand on the beach beneath his toes and the waves beckoning him to travel the world. He yearned for adventure and you-know-whats sounded like adventure.  
“You're so eloquent when drunk”, snorted the Italian. “What do you think I'm doing here, Jason?”  
Jason, a good strong name. Percy giggled to himself as he tasted the name. The name of a hero, just like his own name – Perseus. But it suited the muscular blonde.

“Staring at the waiter's ass, most of the time”, muttered Jason, glaring into Percy's direction, hitting the tabletop with his head. “Something I do not appreciate, even though the boy has a sweet ass. I'm still not sure how you want to work at a strip club, but okay. Tell me why we're here, Neeks.”  
“Don't call me that, my name is N-i-c-o. Not so hard, is it?”, growled the Italian and blushed slightly. “You know I hate that. It sounds stupid and girly.”

Feeling the blonde's intense glare and watching how the Italian averted his eyes, he took it as his queue to take a leave. He needed to get ready for the big show soon anyway, no time to linger around and play noisy spy, as his friends would call it.  
“Spill it, di Angelo”, growled Jason, grabbing the back of Nico's neck to pull him into a bruising kiss. “I want to go back to our hotel. All those nice asses being waved at me make me horny.”  
“There had been reports about this club”, whispered Nico lowly, licking his lips. “That the dancers are just a little too charming, that their songs are just a little too consuming and that their prices are just a little too high without anyone complaining.”  
“What do you mean? I'm too drunk to understand you”, complained the blonde. “I want you!”  
“That they're most likely children of Aphrodite or Venus, using their charmspeak on the costumers”, grunted Nico and rolled his eyes at his boyfriend's horniness. “And my bets are that the child of Poseidon we're looking for is here too. So tell your dick to wait a bit.”  
“What makes you think-“, started the blonde and wanted to complain about his dick's impatience.  
“And now”, interrupted a very loud, booming voice from the stage. “The highlight of the night! The most beautiful, the most enchanting, the most sparkling! I present to you, the Sparkling Diamond of the Purple Oyster! Performing the song that made him so famous throughout the states!”  
A roaring went through the room, whistles and applause, men growing eager and leaning in to get a better look at the stage. Jason and Nico exchanged a curious frown and turned their attention over to the stage to witness it for themselves. The entrance of the so called Sparkling Diamond. The gigantic purple shell in the middle of the stage was opened slowly, music started in the background.  
“The French are glad to die for love”, sang a soft voice that seemed to drown every other sound out.  
The shell opened fully and a boy stood up to exit it. Raven hair curled together to frame the most beautiful face either of the demigods had ever seen. Soft, yet sharp, with a cute nose and rosy cheeks and lips. His eyes were specially highlighted, not that they needed it. Their unique, sea-deep bluish green was burning with so many emotions that they practically radiated. Those eyes seemed to catch every movement from every person within the room. It was hard for Nico to tear his gaze away from those eyes, but he simply needed to see more of the boy. And that he did. The loose, blue frilled shirt was open, revealing a with oil glistering slightly defined chest and stomach, his navel practically begging to be filled with champagne that needed to be licked off this sun-kissed skin. His hips and long, long legs were wrapped into very, very tight fitted black leather pants that were open at the sides to allow a sneak at the thighs of the boy. Nico grabbed Jason's beer absentmindedly to empty it in one go. His mouth suddenly felt so very dry.  
“A kiss on the hand may be quite continental, but diamonds are a girl's best friend”, continued the boy, a certain sway in his hips as he roamed the stage like it was all his and his alone.  
Others joined him on the stage. They were certainly beautiful too, but it was impossible for the two young men to remove their eyes from the singer. Their eyes followed every sway of that perfectly shaped ass as if they were in trance.  
“He's like a siren”, muttered the blonde beneath his breath, his hand sneaking onto his lover's knee. “I could right about now crash into an iceberg, I wouldn't notice...”  
“The temptation of the sea”, whispered Nico back. “I think we found our son of Poseidon.”

“I absolutely couldn't care less”, grunted Jason, gripping Nico's thigh hard and growling slightly. “I just want to fucking bend him over and screw his brains out. Right now. On that stage for all it's worth, I don't care. Does that make me a bad boyfriend, babe?”

“Not as long as I get to watch and screw him too”, muttered the Italian, the glass in his hand nearly breaking. “Just imagine that voice, moaning and whimpering.”

“Already ahead of you, my Ghost Prince”, replied the blonde drily. “I'm imagining it _begging_.”

“Oh, that's a nice one”, agreed Nico and nodded thoughtful. “Those legs must look amazing when he spreads them widely and begs to be taken...”

“Certainly so”, nodded Jason. “Hotel? Now?”

“Absolutely”, grunted his boyfriend and stood. “And once our hormones have settled again, we can start planning how we'll get to that sweet siren.”

“But you will think of how we'll explain to the others that we found him at a strip club”, muttered the blonde, pulling his lover along. “You know our sisters find them 'offensive'.”

“As if I care about that at the moment”, snorted Nico ridiculed. “First fucking then thinking.”


	2. The Ghost Prince and the Sky Prince

1\. The Ghost Prince and the Sky Prince

 

By the time Jason and Nico reached their hotel suit, they were already both naked, with Nico in the blonde's arms, kissing his lover fiercely and demandingly. The blonde had a hard time opening the door with how distracting his Italian could get. Once inside, they only made it to the couch before Jason dropped the younger boy and forced his legs apart.

“You angry when I picture fucking that pretty little diamond now?”, smirked the blonde.

“Not if you're not angry if I picture him too when I'm going to fuck you”, replied the Italian wickedly. “And I'll be fucking you hard, Grace.”

“Feisty bitch”, hissed Jason and crashed their lips together once more. “Only if you can still move once I'm through with you, death brat.”

“Promises, promises”, snickered the younger boy and spread his legs some.

 

/break\

 

Dark eyes were wide as he stared up into the night-sky. His lover had already fallen asleep. Jason always did when he was getting fucked. Nico snorted slightly. What a wimp. Stretching some, he tried to find certain constellations in the stars. They made him feel more homey.

He sighed briefly and wondered if his big sister was currently gazing at the stars too. She had once told him that, whatever happened, however far they would be apart, the night sky was what united them. It was a nice sentiment and Nico liked to hold onto it whenever he was not with her. Because for the longest of times, his sister Bianca had been all he had. After their mother had died in a car accident, they had been on the run. On the run from monsters. For months and months to go, the ten-years-old boy and his two years older sister had been all alone. Sometimes they encountered others like them. Other demigods, as they later learned. But they all tried to stay away from the siblings. Because of their father. Hades, Lord of the Underworld. If there was one thing that frightened children who already had nothing, it was death. And death's children, apparently. Not that Nico or Bianca were at fault for who their father was. Their lives only turned better once they met a Quest. A group of three, one protector, a satyr called Grover, and two demigods. Luke and Thalia. The two of them had brought Bianca and Nico back to a safe place. A place called Olympolis, in the middle of the Mojave Desert, far off from civilization to keep the mortals safe from the godly world. There was the glorious, white marble temple that held the entrance to Olympus, as well as the impressive, black marble temple that led down to the underworld. Apartment complexes that were only used by teenagers, a school where great names such as Lupa and Hercules were teaching, even things like a cinema and a shopping mall. It was a normal city, just that the normal people couldn't notice it due to something called the Mist. A magic woven to protect the mortals from monsters. Being in Olympolis was the first time that Nico felt as if he fitted in. Thalia and Luke had soon become the two people they looked up to, guiding them. The city was full with other demigods – children, teenagers, adults. Though most of them were underaged since most who became adults left to start a life in the mortal world after having learned everything they needed to defend themselves as well as a school education without someone bullying them because of their 'weird' powers. It was home, until they were old enough to make their own homes. Many had left Olympolis to found similar cities, or towns, or villages, all around the world, to offer a safe place for demigods who were unable to reach a desert in North America.

At first it had been hard to fit in for the children of death. But Thalia and Luke had been a great help. They had introduced the siblings to their own friends and, even though only reluctantly, they befriended Nico and Bianca. That was how Nico had met his boyfriend too. Thalia's little brother. It was easy to relate to each other. They were both sons of two of the Big Three – the most powerful gods there were. And they both had older sisters who outran them in experience and strength. Bianca was a fast learner, with the guidance of Lupa she soon learned to control the shadows and the death. But Nico had always been the more... stubborn one of them. He wanted to do it his own way. Which most of the times ended with him in the infirmary, getting a scolding from his sister. But since Jason too had the urge to prove himself, they often found themselves in the infirmary together. Until one day, they had decided to just train together. It was then that they had started to get closer. Nico had learned about how their mother had drunk herself to death and how the two siblings – a child of Zeus and a child of Jupiter, but both with the same mother – had then been brought to camp. They had been quite the scandal. Because, even though there were demigod children of both aspects of the gods in the city, it was rare for a god to sire two children with the same mother, much less in two different forms. And children like them, children of the Big Three, were a scandal anyway. It was what made Jason kind of protective over Nico. Because the blonde preteen knew how it felt to be the odd outsider kid of one of the Big Three. The two grew older and also grew inseparable. By now, Nico was sixteen and Jason was seventeen and they were dating for two years now. But life was never perfect, especially not for the children of the gods.

A war was on the verge of breaking loose. A war mightier than the little quarrels the gods sometimes had. No, a real, proper war. Between deities mightier and older than the gods. And even though the gods had already declared they would not interfere or take sides in this war, they still had to make some precautions. The demigods of Olympolis knew not to get drawn into this, because the two sides of this war had already approached some of them. Though there were still demigods out there, some that didn't even know of their heritage. Satyrs, all around the world, grew more frantic in their searches for them. But two demigods especially worried the gods. For both, Pluto and Poseidon had admitted that there was one child of each still out there somewhere.

Nico shuddered as he remembered the chaos that had erupted all around the city at those news. More children of the Big Three? What if the two fighting parties would get their hands on them before they were claimed and within the safety of the city? They could turn into great weapons if used by the wrong deity. The two mayors of Olympolis, Chiron and Lupa, had spend long discussions with the higher ranked members of the city.  
Until it was decided, with the help of the Roman augur and the Greek oracle, that a quest was in need. A quest for demigods to find the two missing ones. Since they feared to face the angry deities that wanted those two demigods, they deemed it fit to send the well-trained and powerful children of the Big Three out. Jason, Nico, Bianca and Thalia had only reluctantly agreed. They parted ways, each of them took two other demigods with them. Bianca and Thalia had left to search for the child of Pluto, while Jason and Nico were to find the child of Poseidon.  
And even though they were _supposed_ to find them on their own, Jason looking with his two companions while Nico traveled with his two best friends, the couple always stayed close. They mostly met up for camping or in hotels to spend the nights and make plans as to where to continue their search, but once day arrived, they bolted off into different directions for their search.

Nico heaved a sigh and turned to rest his head on Jason's chest, listening to the even heartbeat of his lover. He needed this. Needed to  _hear_ his lover's life. As the child of death, life reassured him somehow. Especially in times of a nearing war. Even more so now that they had found what they had been searching for. This... mesmerizing beauty they had just seen in this club must have been the child of Poseidon they had been looking for. Or he was going crazy. Groaning slightly, he stood. A pain shot up his spine. Jason really hadn't been tender tonight. But then again, neither had he. A wicked smirk slid onto his lips as he walked out of the bedroom and into the living room. It was dark and silent. So either their four companions were already in their own beds, or still out. They had taken this day off. Even they couldn't work all day, all week. Today had been their free day, it had been why Nico had suggested to visit the club. Because really, the last thing Nico had wanted was to check a strip-club/bordello with Clarisse la Rue and Lou Ellen. So rather going there in their private time with his lover. He actually hadn't expected to find anything anyway. Tip-toeing over to the other bedrooms, he peered into them to see if the others were there. Empty. Nico chuckled slightly. It figured. Lou and Reyna weren't in their bed. They must have been exhausted to death and back after the last few days especially so. While Nico and his two friends had walked the streets of Jacksonville for days to come, Jason had chased his two companions through Chicago. Lou and Reyna had spend their whole free day comparing who had suffered more. Lou in Florida, or Reyna in Illinois. In the end they simply had agreed to get wasted. Taking a couple of steps, he looked into the third bedroom of their suit. He chuckled slightly as he saw Clarisse and Chris cuddled closely and obviously naked beneath their sheets. If he and his boyfriend wouldn't have gone at it so hard themselves, he would have probably heard their love-making too. He shuddered at the thought.

Closing the doors silently, he headed out of the suit and onto their balcony, but not without grabbing a small device from the table. It looked like a pocket-mirror, but as Nico opened it, a tiny rainbow spread over the two sides of it. Thanks to Lady Iris, the goddess of messages and rainbows, they could communicate with each other via so-called Iris Messages. And those little pocket-rainbows were like the demigod versions of cellphones.

“Malcolm Cage”, called Nico out softly.

The rainbow flickered to show the image of an annoyed blonde boy and an even more annoyed brunette girl, both of them half-naked as they glared at him. Nico grinned sheepishly.

“You are aware that it is the middle of the night, yes, di Angelo?”, grunted the brunette.

“Sorry, Katie. I kind of couldn't sleep and forgot the time...”, mumbled Nico embarrassed.

“Very well”, sighed Katie and shook her head. “This better be important. Malcolm and I were just about to get... busy. What is it that you need to bother us about?”

The Ghost Prince chuckled slightly. The brunette was the daughter of Demeter, though she was nothing like a pacifistic flower power kind of person. And she was the girlfriend of the guy Nico wanted to talk to. The brains of their clique. Malcolm Cage, son of Athena.

“I wanted to talk to Malcolm”, smiled Nico. “Some... things I wanted to check with him...”

The couple exchanged a glare before the brunette girl heaved a sigh and stood. “I'll go and take a very relaxing bath. You may join me once you're through with this.”

“Okay, Ghost Prince”, growled the blonde with a glare. “This better be good, because I am missing out some glorious sex here. And you already look very thoroughly fucked. Same rights for everyone. What's keeping you awake, Nico?”

“Jay and I met this boy tonight”, sighed Nico and ran his fingers through his hair. “He was... different. Different than anything I have ever encountered. His voice charmed us like not even the children of Apollo could. His beauty was more mesmerizing than the children of Aphrodite and Venus. The way he swayed his hips made me want to just... bend him over...”

“Shall I go and get you someone for your love-trouble then because you're doubting your feelings for Grace, or what are you trying to say?”, grunted Malcolm skeptically.

“No”, huffed the son of Hades and glared. “The boy had the same effect on Jay. And on practically everyone else in the room. The first thing both of us had to think of was a siren. Those mythical things that had charmed sailors and stuff. I mean, it's what they say about sirens, mermaids, all those beautiful beings from the sea. Is it... Could it be that that's the kid of Poseidon?”

The annoyed look on Malcolm's face melted, to be replaced by the curiosity of Athena. The gray eyes switched back and forth as if he was reading something, even though he had no book in front of him. His memory was amazing. The son of Athena hummed and grunted once in a while.

“Yes”, nodded the blonde after a while. “It could be. I mean, I don't know. The last child of Poseidon that had been known was Winston Churchill. And I wouldn't call him the hot siren you just described. So... Well, it could be something like Leo. His fire is a rare ability too, after all. It could be that those siren-like powers could only come with some too. I will contact Chiron and Lupa tomorrow morning and talk to them about this. It may take some time until I'll get to talk to them, they're quite busy. You... just keep an eye on that possible son of Poseidon, got it?”

“Got it”, nodded the son of Hades. “And... sorry again for being the coitus interruptus.”

The blonde huffed again before the image flickered out again. Nico sighed and closed the PIM – whoever came up with that idiotic acronym for a Pocket Iris Message needed to be hit upside the head. The Ghost Prince yawned slightly. All the sex was quite exhausting and the search had drained him too. He felt his knees going a tiny little weaker. He had shadow-traveled so much while they had been in Jacksonville, once there had even been the Minotaur attacking them. He had needed to raise an army of zombies because Lou had been unconscious and Clarisse was busy trying to pull Lou out from under the crumbled bridge. Controlling the death and constantly shadow-traveling – especially so with an unconscious daughter of Hecate – was too much. His head felt a little dizzy. Groaning slightly, he grabbed his own head.

“Bad Ghost Prince”, growled a dark voice behind him, strong arms wrapping around Nico's waist, pulling him against a broad chest. “I told you you should drink more if you use your powers to such expenses. You need much liquid then. And not just the liquid I give you.”

“Shut up and carry me back to our bed”, demanded Nico with a low voice. “I've been completely fine until you and your devilish cock came to drain me.”

“My devilish cock? Says the son of the devil”, snickered Jason and wrapped one arm around his lover's waist to stable him. “Come, let's go and sleep until tomorrow evening.”

“Agreed”, yawned Nico,leaning more against Jason. “And don't call my dad the devil. He doesn't like that. And he dislikes you enough as it is. I don't want you turning into a rabbit or anything...”

“I would be a great rabbit though”, huffed the son of Jupiter and wiggled his nose.

“Adorable. And you're already so good at finding eggs”, snickered Nico and kissed his cheek.

Jason chuckled amused and somehow brought his lover over to their bedroom again, slowly placing him on their bed. Nico was out like a candle within the minute. The amused expression on Jason's face disappeared instantly. A dark frown replaced it as the blonde ran his fingers through the unruly black hair, pulling the son of Hades close to his chest. He disliked this mission. He disliked being on a quest without his lover. They met every night and rested together, but the dangerous part happened without Jason being anywhere near to watch over his Ghost Prince. Not that Nico needed his protection. No, his Ghost Prince was probably the most powerful demigod Jason had ever met. And that list included himself and both their sisters. But even between the di Angelo siblings, their powers varied. While Bianca, the older one, was a child of Darkness, Nico was a child of Death.  
The daughter of Hades controlled shadows on a whole new level and was even able to become invisible with a little help of the shadows surrounding her. And she communicated with the animals of the underworlds, controlling hell-hounds. Nico could shadow-travel like his sister too, but not as good as Bianca. The Shadow Princess could even travel others if she wanted, or with whole groups. Nico was always at his end when he had to shadow-travel alone, but taking someone else with him most of the times ended with Nico sleeping for half a day. No, Nico's realm was death. He could summon zombies and ghosts, communicate with the dead and sense when someone was dying or at the verge of dying. And with death came earth, the sacred place where the dead were buried. Which meant earthquakes and controlling the earth. That was the reason he could shadow-travel too. Only when the shadows were in contact with the earth to make the connection with the underworld.

Jason yawned widely and leaned down to kiss the head of his lover. In all of Olympolis, Nico di Angelo was the most powerful and the most amazing demigod he had ever seen. He too was a child of the Big Three, but controlling lightning and thunder and some flying was nothing compared to an army of angry, bones-wielding zombies. But now that he had seen this Sparkling Diamond, he felt a bit too intrigued to be good. The boy, he had managed to capture a whole room. Including two very, very well-trained children of the Big Three. Jason blushed slightly and shook his head. It was very much unlike him to get that uncontrollably horny. In their bedroom, when he was alone with Nico, yes. But in public? Especially so when he knew they were kind of on a mission (the fact that Nico had turned their date into work would earn that stupid Ghost Prince a punishment later on too). The Sparkling Diamond had manipulated him just like that, without much effort. The boy had not even concentrated on him or anything. But then again, Jason guessed that the boy had no idea about his own powers or heritage. He most likely had not even intended to control anyone. Jason remembered it from his and Nico's beginnings. While he had electrocuted Lupa about five times back then, Nico had scared the younger ones off with many accidentally summoned dead dudes.

A giggling from outside interrupted Jason's rapid thoughts. He frowned and slowly pushed the son of Hades off, putting a pillow between Nico's arms as the Ghost Prince gave a grumpy sound upon being separated from his pillow. Jason smiled fondly down at the son of Hades. Another thing that indicated Nico's exhaustion. The son of Hades had never been very affectionate since his mother's death, not even with his boyfriend. But when he was exhausted, he always got cuddly. The blonde yawned and got out of the bedroom – though not without wrapping one of the blankets around his naked body. No need to scare the party girls off. A slight grin tugged on his lips as he saw the two girls entering the suit, loudly singing 'Call me maybe', both having one arm around each other and holding onto a nearly empty bottle of vodka with the other.

“You had fun, yes?”, asked the son of Jupiter with one raised eyebrow.

“Lotsa!”, exclaimed his best friend enthusiastically and nodded.

“All the hot girls all over the bar”, groaned Lou with wide gestures.

The open bottle in her hand splashed some vodka onto the walls. Jason raised the other eyebrow too. It was never a good combination when the purple-haired punk witch and the normally strict warrior met. Most of the times it started with fighting and ended with them drinking on eternal sisterhood. And what connected them then was the only thing the Greek and Roman had in common. Their sexual preference. Once the two were drunk, they started to roam the lesbian bars and clubs since they at least had the same pray. The normal, shy and average girls but with big boobs. And that always ended with a scolding from Lou's girlfriend, but the witch defended herself always only with one simple statement. That she just wanted to help the Roman find a girlfriend of her own since Reyna would never-ever manage that alone. Which led to another fight. And then ended in another round of drinking and partying. It was their very own circle of life.

“And that ass”, groaned Reyna, the bottle hitting the table-top hard. “I want some nice ass!”

“And boobs!”, added Lou with a huff, gesturing widely again. “Like Randa's! Nice and soft and-”

“Bi—ig!”, agreed the Roman girl and licked her lips. “And blonde!”

“What? No! Brunette!”, huffed the daughter of Hecate with a glare.

“You're dumb!”, grunted Reyna and stemmed her hands into her hips. “There ain't nothing hotter than a cute blonde with golden curls framing her hot boobs!”

“The fuck no! Nothing better than dark hair!”, disagreed the punk girl, though this time her bottle slipped out of her hand and nearly hit the wall. “Oh... Ooopsie!”

“No kidding?”, huffed Jason, who had manipulated the air around the bottle to stop it from hitting the wall behind which his boyfriend was sleeping. “You two go onto bed right now or I am going to call Miranda. And you're not getting up before you're sober again.”

“Aw”, pouted Lou with a quivering lip and duck beneath Reyna's arm. “Come on.”

“Yeah. He _always_ kills he mood. He's only fun when he has his lover-boy”, huffed Reyna and directed them to their bedroom. “Nighty-night, Jay.”

“Nighty-night, Rey”, chuckled Jason and watched how the door closed behind the two girls.

Shaking his head and lowering the bottle again, he turned to get back to his boyfriend.


	3. The Diamond Girl, the Wolf Boy and the Latino Imp

2\. The Diamond Girl, the Wolf Boy and the Latino Imp

 

“Look, can't we just pay the next time we come here? Please?” She hated the pleading in her voice.

“No. Come, eat, pay. No pay, call police.”

“No police!”, exclaimed the girl frantically and shook her head.

“Look”, growled the boy next to her, taking a protective step forward in front of his girl. “We've been here twenty times this month, can't you make an exception? We must have forgotten our wallet at home, we will pay you the next time?”

“No pay, I call police”, repeated the man behind the counter with a stern glare.

The boy gritted his teeth, his sharp, distinguished Asian features hardening as he glared at the owner of the diner they were standing in. He gripped the counter hard with one hand, the other hand laid around his girlfriend's waist, a girl with a curvy, chocolate-skinned body, dark curls and deep, golden eyes. She was biting her lips in worry, one hand in her pocket. He knew she was playing with a diamond inside. They couldn't afford for the police to come here. Her eyes darted over to the door. They needed to get out of here if this took such a turn. Or to pay him with his own death.

“Scuse me, I don't mean to interrupt, but I have to hurry so I'd like to pay?”

The couple turned to glare at the intruder. Their eyes settled on an impish looking Latino boy, maybe a little younger than them. He had a sheepish grin on his face as he passed the money. The man behind the counter nodded pleased and took it, just to freeze and frown.

“Wait! Get change!”, called the man surprised. “Is too much for one doughnut!”

“Put theirs on my bill too and it'll cover”, shrugged the boy as he left.

The man was looking from the twenty dollar bill over to the Latino and then settled for the couple. He frowned for another second before he deemed it fit. Either way, he got his money. He nodded, signaling for the couple that they could leave without any trouble. The girl released a breath she had not noticed that she had been holding, gripping her boyfriend's hand.

“Frank”, urged the dark-skinned female, pulling on his hand. “We should hurry home.”

“Just a second, Hazel”, muttered the Asian and turned into the direction the Latino had left for.

It truly was the wrong day to provoke Frank. Not that any day was good for that, because Frank was a short-tempered son of Mars with the ability to shift into any animal at will, which may happen more often when he was angry. But living on the street, being on the run with his girlfriend and having to constantly fear being caught and maybe separated from Hazel had been making him edgy. He remembered that once upon a time in Canada, he had been a soft and easy-going guy. But that seemed so far away now, like another life. Everything had changed for him when his grandmother had died, only leaving him a letter that was sending him to some odd city in Nevada in the USA. His life took a completely different turn when he had a run-in with a ruffled, ragged and rough beauty. Hazel Levesque, daughter of Pluto. The first other demigod he had met. It had been exciting, at first. But when he had learned of the hardships of demigods, he got scared. So they decided to stick together. To not go to some strange city. To just be themselves, together.

That had been about three years ago now and the eighteen-years-old son of Mars could only barely remember how life had been when he had not been on the run with Hazel, crashing somewhere, anywhere, jobbing to earn whatever little money they had, fighting monsters and dodging other demigods. It was a hard and dangerous life, but he wouldn't trade it for anything, because he shared this life with Hazel and there could nothing be more wonderful than that.

“Hey, punk!”, called Frank loudly as the Latino came into his view. “What were you thinking?!”

The little imp turned to look at him surprised and dumbfounded. The look changed to one of panic when he was pressed against the wall of the diner by a bull of a guy.

“W—What?”, yelped the Latino wide-eyed.

“We're not some charity case you can throw money at, kiddo!”, growled Frank irritated.

“I—I didn't mean it like that!”, huffed the smaller boy a bit irritated and tried to shove the tall, broad Asian off, to no avail. “Let me go! I was just trying to be _nice_!”

Frank growled angered, but a delicate hand on his upper arm stopped him. He turned glowing yellow eyes on his girlfriend, the sight of her instantly calming him. His eyes changed back to their normal, warm brown color as he took a deep breath. Hazel looked concerned and was giving him one silent message through her eyes:  _Calm down, don't blow us_ . Still, his fists were shaking as he put the small Latino down (the kid was weighting less than Hazel even!).

“Sorry”, smiled Hazel in the most charming and dazzling way. “My boyfriend is very old-school, I guess he feels offended that you came to our rescue. Thank you very much, by the way. I must have left my wallet at home. I'm Hazel, that's my boyfriend Frank, it's nice to meet you.”

The kid looked reluctant, understandably so. Frank had just basically threatened his life (the boy had no idea how close the shifter had been to tearing him apart) and now Hazel was suddenly being all nice and friendly. But her smile was so convincing that he shakingly took her offered hand.

“I'm Leo. And no problem”, shrugged the Latino with an awkward laugh. “I know protective boyfriends when I see them. Have enough of those in my circle of friends.”

“How can we repay you for helping us out, Leo?”, smiled Hazel and tilted her head a bit.

Her dark, thick curls fell into her face, covering one of her stunningly golden eyes. Frank shook his head slightly. It was really hard to focus on anything else aside from Hazel when she was close.

“Actually... Uh, well... No, really. No”, declined the Latino after a moment.

“Ah, but that sounds like there is something”, chuckled the chocolate-skinned girl.

“Well”, drawled the kid awkwardly. “I'm... kind of lost, you know? You guys don't happen to know your way around here and can tell me how to get to the downtown area?”

Frank wanted to bark a no, but Hazel beat him to it. “Of course. It's the least we can do. You saved us quite the time. If he would have called the police, we would have been stuck here for hours until this embarrassing matter would have been cleared. Come with us.”

The daughter of Pluto had a bright smile on her lips as she took her boyfriend's hand and led the way toward the nearby bus-station, the Latino slowly trailing after them. Frank pointedly glared at his girlfriend, but she pretended to be unaware, happily chatting away about random, unimportant stuff with the foreign kid. Frank did not like this situation the least bit. As they reached the bus stop, the Latino walked up to them, telling Hazel something in a loud and excited voice, waving his hands wildly. With furrowed eyebrows did Frank look the kid up and down. If they were going to spend that much time with the boy, he needed to make sure that he wasn't a threat to either of them. The first thing the son of Mars noticed was that the Latino was  _small_ , he was at least one and a half, if not even two heads smaller than Frank and about half a head smaller than Hazel – not that that was hard seeing as she truly had model measures, tall and curvy. The Latino was now running one hand through his broad, black curls that fell slightly into his face. His very elvish face. Frank had to blink a bit stunned as he took the smaller boy's features in. He had a broad and excited grin on his lips, one that was nearly radiant and made his light, earthy brown eyes sparkle. He wasn't broad or muscular but rather looked quite frail somehow. Not a threat. And as far as it looked, there weren't any hidden weapons either. No threat at all. The bus arrived and the trio entered, the two still chatting teens entering first, facing each other slightly. Frank followed them and came to stand behind Leo, one arm wrapped around Hazel to make sure she stayed close. Taking a fast look around, Frank noticed that the bus was short of bursting. Probably a good thing, it gave him an excuse to get close enough to the Latino to take a sniff.

Frank was more than just a son of Mars. He had inherited a very keen ability from his mother's side of the family. The ability to shift into whatever animal he could imagine. This had come in quite handy when being on the run. He was a good fighter with a sword, but even a better one with claws and teeth, preferably as either a dragon or a wolf. Though the amount of shifting he had done in the past three years had caused him to keep some of his more animalistic trades even in his human form, hence all the growling he had done. But it had also made his senses keener, which had proved to be very convenient for them. He could sniff monsters before seeing them, which had rescued the couple quite often by now.

Taking a cautious step closer to the Latino, pretending to be pushed up against the boy because of how overly loaded the bus was, he leaned down some to sniff the smaller boy's neck. Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath, taking in the obviously younger boy's scent. His eyes opened fast, shifting to a glowing red and a deep yellow and back to their normal color in the fraction of a second. He hastily took two steps back, away from the little imp.

Too many things had invaded his nostrils at once. The first, the most prominent smell was the main essence of the boy. It was the fragrance of oil and wood and fire, very much fire, burned ashes and metal. Like standing in the middle of a workshop. He knew that scent, it was the scent lingering on every demigod child of Vulcan. With the years on the run, he had learned to distinguish the different smells of different demigods, like the rich earthy and deadly scent of children of the underworld or the fresh and flowery smell of children of Ceres or Prosperina, so he couldn't quite make sure if the realm had different deities, but he could sort them out a bit. There was another smell though, something he could only describe as what must be purely the Latino. A bit like caramel cookies and hot chocolate and fire, but a different kind of fire, like the one cackling in the fireplace where couples could cuddle in front of, a warm and soothing kind of fire. Overall, the kid smelled sweet and delicious and soft and good, something he had rarely ever smelt before. Shaking his head to get that odd thought out of it, he took a tentative step forward again to take another sniff.

There was a salty smell lingering on the Latino, though not the salty smell of the sea. He knew that one, him and Hazel had a run-in with a child of Neptune a couple of months ago. No, it was rather the smell of tears, of loneliness and sadness. Somehow that smell didn't sit right with Frank.

“Where do you have to go?”, asked Frank, trying to keep the growl out of his voice.

“Weren't you listening to a word we've been saying in the last quarter hour?”, chuckled Hazel.

“Not a problem”, grinned the Latino reassuringly before turning to the son of Mars. “I was saying that I have to go to the... _Black Rose Hotel_ near the park.”

“I told him that that's not too far off from our place and that we could bring him. That's alright, isn't it, Frank?”, asked the daughter of Pluto, her eyes hard and demanding, not accepting a no.

“Sure”, shrugged the Canadian slowly. “Say, how did you get lost anyway? You're not living around here then, I assume. A tourist, or visiting someone?”

The delicate Latino squirmed under his intense glare and Frank couldn't blame the boy. He hadn't talked to the tinkerer since the threats in front of the diner, of course the kid would feel uncomfortable under Frank's undivided attention now.

“Tourist. I'm on a road trip with friends and we kind of split up because we couldn't decide what would be the most interesting thing around here. I didn't really pay attention where I was going and then I found myself in that diner”, shrugged the smaller male with an embarrassed grin.

Someone from behind pushed Frank. Not much and he would have normally not even budged, but it was a good excuse to bump into the Latino until they were pressed against each other. His nose was buried in the surprisingly soft curls of the smaller boy so he could take a third smell. He tried to tell himself that he did not smell the boy again because his smell was so intoxicating. Frank gritted his teeth as he smelt someone else on the younger demigod. Two people, a female and a male.

“Who are you traveling with?”, wanted the son of Mars to know.

“Two friends”, replied the Latino, blushing brightly at the close proximity between them.

“Must be nice”, grinned Hazel interested. “Where are you heading? You said it's a road trip.”

“We don't really have a destination”, shrugged the smaller half-blood. “We're just... traveling through the US from city to city, wherever we want to go.”

“Sounds like fun”, grunted Frank a little envious.

Holidays, just doing what they pleased, it sounded like the kind of freedom Frank and Hazel couldn't afford. Whenever a threat showed its mostly ugly head, they had to leave to wherever they had a chance to be safe at least for a little while.

“What about you guys?”, asked the Latino curiously. “Were you born in this city?”

“We've move here a couple of months ago”, replied Hazel easily. “Ah. Our stop. Come on, guys.”

She grabbed both their hands to pull them out of the bus. Once outside, they took a look around.

“Well, where to go now?”, wanted the tinkerer to know.

“I'm actually not quite sure”, admitted the daughter of Pluto with a faint blush.

The curly-haired boy frowned and took another look around before his face brightened in a cute way and he bolted off. “I'll go and get a city map!”

Frank shook his head, observing how the other boy walked up to an info station where he was most likely going to get a map from. Without intending to, his eyes wandered down to stare at the surprisingly well-formed behind of the little imp.

“Fra~ank”, chimed Hazel in a sweet voice, grabbing Frank's shirt to pull him down until their lips were only inches apart. “So, what do you think about him?”

“Hazel”, huffed the son of Mars a bit exhausted. “He's a demigod.”

“Really?”, blinked his girlfriend, obviously surprised. “Whose kid?”

“Vulcan. He smells like a workshop”, snorted Frank.

“That's brilliant!”, exclaimed Hazel with sparkling eyes. “Can we keep him then?”

The Canadian blinked a couple of times, staring stunned at the beautiful girl in front of him. That came as a surprise. He blinked another couple of times, wondering what she had been thinking.

“He's not a lost puppy, Hazel. We can't just pick him up from the street and keep him.”

“B—But”, started the daughter of Pluto with a pout. “Maybe he is still unclaimed, maybe he doesn't know who he is yet! What if those friends he's traveling with are innocent mortals that are endangered by traveling with a demigod! I doubt he'd want to endanger anyone! And what if they get attacked by a monster? He doesn't look like he would stand a chance against any kind of monster! It would be better if we'd take him under our wings!”

“It would be too dangerous for him”, hissed Frank, his eyes flickering yellow. “He's untrained, he's not strong. The life we lead would get him killed. We're no ordinary demigods, Haze. It's too dangerous to get anyone involved in this, I thought we agreed on that.”

She bit her lips in guilt and let go of him, averting her eyes to stare at the pavement. As if to interrupt the tension between the couple, Leo came running back to them. No. Not Leo, no name, no getting attached to the cute Latino. Argh. Not cute either. No. Getting. Attached.

“Okay, so... Here. I have no idea where to find which street”, grinned Leo sheepishly, shoving the map toward the couple. “You think you can find the right way?”

Frank huffed, feeling as if his wolfish sense of direction was being insulted. Taking the map, he took a good look, soon determining where they were and finding the street Leo's hotel was located at. It wasn't even far from their current location.

“Come on, I know where we have to go”, growled Frank.

“Does he always growl that much?”, whispered Leo softly.

“He's quite... animalistic”, giggled Hazel, linking arms with Leo. “ _Especially_ in bed.”

The son of Mars threw a glance at Leo to catch a brilliantly delicate blush on the caramel-skinned cheeks. Licking his lips, he led the way. That blush really looked delicious on Leo. The Latino. Argh. His mind needed to stop being a jerk to him. The other boy was neither cute nor intriguing or delicious and Frank was  _not_ getting attached to him. And why did he have one arm wrapped around the smaller boy's waist now?! Traitorous arm.

“How long will you be staying here?”, asked Hazel curiously.

“We'll probably leave in the morning”, shrugged Leo, his hands in his pockets.

They fell into a pleasant chat about all the places Leo had already been and where he wanted to go, though mostly Leo and Hazel were talking while Frank was quite content staring at them and taking deep breaths. He liked the way their scents smelt combined.

Sadly enough, only after about an hour of walking, the hotel came into sight. There were two people standing in front of it, obviously involved in a heated discussion. A beautiful girl with Italian features and a freckled brunette boy, as far as Frank could see from that distance. Leo gave a brilliant smile and ran off toward them. Once he was out of earshot, Hazel tugged on Frank's hand.

“Well?”, demanded the daughter of Pluto to know. “Can we keep him now? Please?”

“We could-”, started Frank softly as they walked closer.

But the change of the wind cut him off. The smell of the three teenagers was transported to them through the air. Leo's scent and the other two. One smelt of fire too, but not the warming kind like Leo, rather a very unpleasant and dangerous one, there was also something odd, like different herbs and stuff, reminding him of potions. The other however was what nearly frightened Frank. The same earthy and rich scent as Hazel, just darker, more like copper and death. That smell he knew all too well. They had once nearly encountered another child of Pluto before, a boy. Thinking of it, this girl looked quite a lot like him. Frank growled and grabbed Hazel's arm.

“It's them”, spat the son of Mars, pulling her into a dark alley out of sight.

“What? What do you mean?”, blinked the golden-eyed girl confused.

“They're all demigods. The girl is your half-sister! They must be of The Search”, growled Frank.

Her eyes widened in fear as she stared over at the talking trio in disbelief. The son of Mars growled deep in his throat and shook himself, feeling his body shift. He stared at her with a silent command. She sighed, worrying her lips as she climbed onto his back and held his neck. Frank whined and flapped his wings, the mighty black pegasus lifting off into the air.

“But he's cute”, whined the daughter of Pluto with a pout. “He simply can't be part of The Search. He's way too innocent and oblivious for that. He wouldn't stand a chance against either of us in a fight! It would be ridiculous to put him onto The Search!”

In his pegasus-form, Frank could only whine and roll his eyes in reply. Even though he had to silently agree to her. The last time they had a run-in with The Search, it had been a daughter of thunder, a one-eyed Japanese guy and a blonde surfer-dude with a long scar running down his face. The trio had been fierce and it had only been due to luck and a drop-by from the Minotaur, who had distracted the three for long enough so Frank and Hazel could sneak away without being seen by them. The Search had been after them for months now, but the couple had no idea what The Search wanted from them. All they knew was that each search party seemed to involve three demigods and one of them being a child of the Big Three. They had already encountered the daughter of thunder and a son of the underworld. He wasn't sure but he guessed the son of the sea they had briefly met a while back must have belonged to The Search too, not that they had stayed long enough to interrogate the green-eyed boy back then.

“I refuse to believe that he's one of them”, murmured Hazel close to his ear, comfortably plastered against his back. “He's too cute for that.”

Again, the Canadian had to agree. Leo truly was too cute. No. He wasn't cute and Frank did not care. Especially not if the boy truly was part of The Search. There was no way they could or would ever see the Latino again. Frank refused to risk his and Hazel's life just for a nice ass.

His eyes trailed down to look at the trio on the street. Leo was frantically running around, obviously looking for them. It send a stinging pain through Frank's being. The little imp had most likely spied on them and found out about their favorite diner, trying to track them down and make them trust him so he could easily lead them into a trap. He gritted his teeth and turned to to leave the city.


	4. The Firebug, the Witch Boy and the Shadow Princess

3\. The Firebug, the Witch Boy and the Shadow Princess

 

There was a deep frown marring the Latino's features as he leaned against the cool metal of his greatest joy and pride, the mechanical dragon Festus. His baby had taken quite the hit from the Hydra three days ago when they were flying over Seattle, forcing Leo and the other members of his quest to take a longer rest for now. With one screwdriver behind his ear and another one in his hand, he continued working on the big robot.

It had been so long now that Leo was traveling with his two companions, so long that he barely remembered how mundane life in Olympolis had been. But the quest to find the child of Pluto and the child of Poseidon had demanded for the already claimed children of the Big Three to pack their bags, snatch the strongest demigods and go out into the world to find the two.

Truth be told, Leo would have never figured himself to be part of such an important quest. He never considered himself anything special, just one of hundreds of tinkerers, children of Vulcan or Hephaestus. Just his scrawny, little self. He had never been much of a fighter, always managed to dodge training, instead locking himself up in some bunker or garage to tinker away with his two favorite siblings – Nyssa and Jake, both Greeks like himself and both older than him.

Leo had been young, very young, when his mother had died in a tragic fire. Ever since then he had been horribly afraid of fire. He had ended up in foster care. With foster families. Many foster families. None of those had been any good. There had only been one foster family he had enjoyed staying with – the Jacksons. But then Sally had died and Gabe had growled enough about having to care for Percy, so Leo packed his bags once more and left. Once again all on his own. It had been a nymph, Mellie, who had spotted him during a phase where he was living on the streets. The nymph was, like many nymphs, working together with the satyrs and thus working for Olympolis. Ever since then, Mellie and the satyr who had been send to collect him upon Mellie's call were keeping a close eye on Leo. Not that he minded. Coach Hedge could be quite the hand full, but he was a good guy (and madly in love with Mellie, which was probably the main reason why he took care of Leo to begin with, because he couldn't deny her and she had developed quite the maternal instincts for the 'adorable, little kid'). It had all frightened him at the beginning. Gods. Satyrs. Nymphs. Demigods. He had only been twelve years by the time he got collected and the last four years of being handed around from family to family, from foster home to foster home had left their scars on him. Not just bodily. He was scared of his new surroundings, of all the people. It had helped him that demigods lived together in small apartments, always four teens. No adults. Which was a great relief, because most of the times it had been the adults mistreating him. This way, he had three boys around his age, helping him out, guiding him, including him. It was how he had met his half-brother Jake Mason, his roommate. The older son of Hephaestus had very soon started to take on the protective big brother role. Though mostly because one of their other flatmates – Luke the thieving trickster son of Hermes – loved to molest Leo. In a 'playful, friendly' way, as Luke's roommate and best friend Ethan loved to say. Other than the molesting, the three others were the best arrangement he had ever lived in. It was nearly like a family and meeting their friends had helped him socializing and for the first time actually _belonging_.

Belonging didn't make him popular or anything though. He was just one of hundreds of tinkerers, Roman and Greek. His friends were powerful demigods, well-trained demigods who had spend so many years in Olympolis already while it had only been four years for him now and so far he had managed to escape all kinds of training of the physical kind quite well.

That was why he didn't understand how he had ever managed to join this quest. It was the quest of the century and the four children of the most powerful gods had been chosen to lead it – Thalia, Jason, Nico and Bianca. Everything had been up to those four. They had split up, deciding that Nico and Jason would chase the child of Poseidon and Thalia and Bianca would go looking for the child of Pluto. Each search party chose four more demigods to join them, so the parties could also split up for two quests of three, the way quests were meant to be.

Nico chose his two best friends, no surprises there. Especially since Clarisse la Rue was one of the strongest fighters and best strategists Olympolis had. The daughter of Ares wasn't just strong, she was also headstrong. Lou Ellen was a different matter though, she was a decent fighter, good with a sword, but that was not her strong suit. What made her one of the most powerful demigods around was that she was a daughter of Hecate and the powers of witchcraft were, after the Big Three, considered to be the strongest and most various. This trio hadn't surprised anyone and Mayor Lupa and Mayor Chiron had only nodded in approval.

The other half of the quest for the child of Poseidon hadn't been all that surprising either. Jason too chose his best friend, the daughter of Bellona Reyna Avila Ramírez-Arellano, to accompany him. She was the only reason why Clarisse was only 'one of' the strongest fighters and best strategists and not 'the'. Reyna was the Roman version of Clarisse, two sides of a coin, as everyone loved to joke. The third member of this trio was Chris Rodriguez, who most people thought had only been chosen so Clarisse would lay off, because her boyfriend was the only one able to tame her even a little bit. But Leo knew better than that. A child of Hermes came with a variety of trades, not just trickery and thievery, but Hermes was also the deity of travelers and for a quest like that, this came in more than just handy. The 'travelers' part of Hermes' job description manifested in a built-in GPS system for his kids, so to speak. And when you travel the whole US, that was very useful.

Jason's big sister too had chosen a child of traveling, her best friend Luke Castellan. Someone who also happened to be one of the best swordsmen of Olympolis. Ethan Nakamura completed this trio. To balance them out, as ironic as that sounded considering that he was a child of Nemesis. But Luke and Thalia were both very headstrong and stubborn people and as much as they loved each other like siblings, they also fought like siblings. Ethan was a calm and collected boy, always managing to calm them. He also was a good strategist and fighter.

Then there was the fourth trio, Bianca's quest. As the other three children of the Big Three, she too had chosen her best friend to be at her side. Which had been a much appreciated choice by the mayors, because Alabaster Torrington was also a child of Hecate and Lou's older and more experienced brother. And then there was Leo. Right next to the most powerful witch and the Shadow Princess. The Latino had no idea what he was doing there, none at all. Sure, a little while ago they had noticed that Leo could control fire, a rare ability only very few children of Hephaestus/Vulcan could do and none had been able to in over a century. But Leo  _hated_ it. Fire was what had killed his mother and there was nothing he hated and feared more than fire. Which led to him never actually using it. Which made him basically useless. A super powerful demigod, too afraid to use his powers? It was laughable.

“In the name of my mother's magic, if you don't spill what is bothering you, I will personally hex you and turn you into a kitten or something, Valdez!”

Leo yelped and jumped, his tools falling to the ground with a loud thud. Wide, light brown eyes stared up at the freckled boy leaning against the metal dragon right next to Leo. The freckled boy rolled his misty green eyes and raised one eyebrow.

“Jumpy, are you?”, snorted the freckled brunette. “If I were a monster, I would have been able to kill you in about... twenty different ways by now. How often do we have to tell you to never let your guard down, kiddo?”

“Sorry, Alabaster”, mumbled Leo, pursuing his lips in guilt.

“I don't want to hear that you're sorry”, grunted the son of Hecate with a glare. “I want to hear what has you on edge like that. You've been sulking for over a day now and Bibi is worried for you.”

“Tell Bianca that I'm alright”, replied the Latino, picking up his tools again.

“You are not. Don't bullshit me”, snarled Alabaster with one raised eyebrow.

“I said”, growled Leo with a glare of himself. “That I'm alright.”

“Look”, grunted Alabaster, unfolding his arms and stepping closer. “You have three options.”

Leo raised one eyebrow skeptically, deciding to put his tools away for today. It was never safe to tinker while the son of Hecate was around. Because Alabaster considered that rude and loved to hex him as punishments. Most of the times ending with Leo walking around with cat ears and a fluffy cat tale for the rest of the day.

“What do you mean?”, asked the son of Hephaestus slowly.

“You either tell me what is going on willingly, or I'll go and get Bianca so you'll have to tell her”, replied Alabaster, counting his fingers with his arguments. “Or I'll hex you until you spill it.”

“You're evil”, muttered Leo with a pout.

“Nothing new there”, shrugged the brunette and smirked. “Well? Which one shall it be?”

“It's just...”, started Leo, running his fingers through his hair. “The two teens I met yesterday...”

“Your two hallucinations?”, snorted Alabaster with one raised eyebrow.

“I didn't hallucinate them!”, objected the Latino with a glare and turned around.

It was getting dark outside, he should call it quits for today and get back to their hotel to get some sleep. Alabaster followed him, laughing silently to himself. Leo huffed. His two companions hadn't believed him when he had told them about Frank and Hazel the day before.

“You pointed at _empty space_ yesterday”, pointed Alabaster out. “And then you were running around frantically and we even helped you looking, but there was no one even close. And people normally don't vanish into thin air, Valdez.”

Leo shut his mouth. He knew Alabaster was right. They had looked everywhere, asked people close by, but no one had seen them walk into any direction. There was a possibility, of course, but Leo refrained from voicing it in front of Alabaster. Because people did vanish into thin air. Nico and Bianca did it on a regular base, Bianca even more often so than her younger brother. Shadow-traveling. Something only children of the underworld could do. And they  _were_ looking for a child of the underworld, after all. Leo chewed his lower lip.

Alabaster sighed, wrapping one arm around Leo's shoulders and pulling the smaller demigod close. “Look, it's all cute and adorable that you're crushing on someone, but why someone we meet on a quest? In a city we will leave as soon as you get that bloody dragon to work again? Someone whose full names you don't even know? There are plenty of demigods in Olympolis and believe me one thing, the only partner truly fitted for a demigod is another demigod. You can't explain what we do and what we can to a mortal. They would never understand. You get that, right?”

Leo shrugged and averted his eyes to stare at the pavement in faked interest. He knew that, he knew all of that. But somehow he had connected with Frank and Hazel. He knew what they were doing. They were on the run, he recognized that paranoia in Frank's eyes, knew it from his own image on the mirror from years of running away from the system. He understood that, he related to that. But it wasn't the only thing. Hazel was  _stunning_ . She looked like she had jumped out of some freaking advertisement for Victoria's Secret or stuff like that. With those long legs and hot curves, the long curls and chocolate skin. And those  _eyes_ . Leo would swear they were actually golden. And she had been so nice to him. Something he wasn't really used to. While being on the run or in the system, most treated him with little to no kindness and in Olympolis, they only laid off him because he was friends with the strongest kids around. But just genuine kindness without being the protective big siblings like Jake and Nyssa? And then there was Frank. Hot, bulky, strong, muscular, tall Frank. At first the other boy had been hard on him, had only glared at him and shoved him around (and Leo wouldn't admit that it had totally turned him on when Frank had shoved him into the wall).

Shaking his head, he tried to clear his head and not think about the couple. They had vanished, left him alone like everybody else he had ever liked always did. Blinking a few times, he looked up to find himself already in front of their hotel suit. It was a good thing Alabaster had led the way, because otherwise Leo wouldn't have reached it, so lost in thought as he was at the moment. The door opened and a beautiful Italian girl stood in front of them, her long curly black hair in a thick braid, her black eyes sparkling amused, a thin, white summer dress covering her curvy body.

“Boys?”, grinned the girl brightly, leaning against the door frame. “You're back. Fantastic. I was just on my way to hit the bar and listen into the city's gossip. Mind to accompany me?”

“As long as you pay for the drinks, Bibi”, smirked Alabaster, offering her his arm.

She smiled and linked their arms and looked at Leo curiously. “You coming?”

“Naw, I'll sit that one out”, declined Leo with a small smile, pushing past Bianca. “I'm tired.”

“If... you're sure...”, hummed the daughter of Hades skeptical and leaned in to kiss his cheek. “Be a good boy and sleep well, you need it. You're working too hard, kiddo.”

Leo nodded slowly and watched his two friends leave before closing the door. Heaving a sigh, he walked over to the double bed the three of them were sharing and collapsed on it. Grunting slightly, he patted his jeans for his wallet, pulling it out and opening it. There wasn't much he was carrying around, mostly because there wasn't much he owned. He had a magical tool belt – Lou and Alabaster had enchanted it for him so it was 'bigger on the inside' (bloody Whovians, but it did come in handy so he was okay with it) – and the tools within. That was about it. All he had ever really owned. That, and his wallet. It was simple, dark brown leather. What was important about it however were the three photos within. One was of his new family – Jake and Nyssa having their arms wrapped around his neck, Jake's boyfriend Will hanging off Jake on the other side, Nyssa's girlfriend Kayla holding hands with her, Leo's best friend Austin (the younger brother of Will and Kayla) hugging Leo tightly around the mid-section. Another was the most valuable possession Leo had. The only photo that had survived the fire, the only photo Leo had left of his mother and him. Esperanza was around twenty-three on the picture, all smiles and laughter and love, her eyes shining in love for the four-years-old boy she was holding so tightly and protectively. A single tear slipped down Leo's cheek as he looked as his mother's face. And the third photo was of his third family, of the only place after his mother's death and before Olympolis where he had ever felt home. Sally Jackson, the most motherly person aside from his own mother he had ever met, smiling brightly into the camera, both her arms wrapped around two young boys, who were hugging each other tightly, one with sparkly sea-green eyes and dark hair and the other a mischievously grinning Latino imp. Leo sighed again, staring at the pictures with unfocused eyes. He still remembered how he had first met Sally and Percy Jackson. It had been one of his normal days while living on the streets. He had soon noticed that sneaking around grocery shops and picking stuff out of carts from shopping mothers, or elderly people. Because those mostly were sympathetic with homeless kids and gave him the stuff anyway if they caught him in the act, but he normally tried to steer clear from the kids of those mothers, because they were mostly brats and rattled him out. But Percy Jackson had been different...

 

/flashback\

 

_Leo was fishing an apple out of a shopping card, his eyes trained on the pretty brunette woman that was currently at the front of her car. If he hurried, he could get an apple or two out of this and be away before she returned and noticed him._

“ _What are you doing there?”_

_Leo yelped and let go of the shopping card, falling flat down onto his ass. He stared wide-eyed up at the boy standing over him, frowning down at him with his impressive, sea-green eyes. Crap. How had Leo missed that the woman had her son with her? Green eyes watched him curiously, staring him down and switching between looking at his face and at the apple in his hand._

“ _Mommy!”, called the boy, his eyes not leaving Leo._

_The brunette woman rounded the car to stand behind the boy. “Yes, Percy?”_

“ _He tried to steal an apple. But I think he's the worst thief in the world”, commented the boy – Percy – and pointed at Leo accusingly. “Can we keep him? He doesn't look like he has a place to stay. He can sleep in my room too! Please, mommy!”_

_The woman frowned and leaned down to look into Leo's eyes. “Hello, dear. My name is Sally and that's my son Percy. No need to be scared. Tell me, where do you live? I'll bring you home. Your parents must be worried for you. You look like you've been rolling around in mud, my boy.”_

_The Latino frowned confused and tried to back away. He hated when people invaded his personal space, it never meant anything good. Instead of looking at them, he looked down at himself. There was mud covering him from head to toe from the last time he sneaked out of a foster home. It had been a rainy night and he had slipped. Not that he had a washing machine at his hand..._

“ _I don't have parents”, mumbled Leo, unable to stop the words. “Or a place to live.”_

“ _See?!”, exclaimed Percy, flailing around with his arms. “I told you! Can we keep him? Can we?”_

“ _He's not a lost puppy”, scolded Sally before turning back to Leo. “If you want, you can come with us and take a shower at our place. You and Percy are about the same size, you can wear his clothes and I'll wash yours, it's the least we can do, mh?”_

 

/flashback|end\

 

The least they could do for someone who had just tried to steal from them. But that was the Jackson-heart, one big place for everyone they met. It hadn't taken much to convince Sally's husband, a horrible, horrible man, to take Leo in. The fact that they would get money from the state for taking a foster child in was all the reason Gabe needed. And aside from Gabe, the place was perfect. Small, but perfect. It had been home. Sally had been wonderful and Percy had been like a brother to him. Sally had always joked that they were like twins. But then Sally had died in a car accident two years later and Gabe would have probably loved to get rid of Percy too, but he couldn't. Not as his legal guardian. But getting rid of the annoying foster brat, that had been easy. After that, being on the street had seemed so much harder than it had in years.

His hand grabbed the phone standing on the bedside table and his fingers dialed a number, all happening without his consent or conscious decision. It rang a couple of times. Leo sighed and turned onto his back, staring up at the ceiling. It kept ringing.

“Hello?”, panted a voice at the other end, just when Leo was about to hang up.

The Latino's face brightened and he sat up some. “Percy! It's me, Leo!”

“Hey! How's my favorite stray lion cub doing?” He could hear the smile in Percy's voice.

“Good, well, I guess...”, mumbled Leo and licked his lips. “What about you? You sound as if you're in a hurry. If it's a bad time, I can call you later or something...”

“Don't change the topic”, warned Percy in his serious voice scolding big brother voice. “You know how I'm doing. What about you? You had said you're on some top secret mission thingy and you couldn't call for a while. What's up? You sound troubled, little bro.”

It was wrong to load his problems onto Percy's shoulders, he knew how much his 'big bro' had to go through after Sally's death and how crappy Percy's life was. Leo was lucky compared to that. And if it would be possible, Leo would take the other boy in, it had even been his first question upon arriving in Olympolis, but mortals weren't allowed to live with the demigods.

“Well...”, started Leo unsure. “There was this girl. And this boy. And I met them yesterday...”

“That sounds interesting”, teased Percy. “Tell me more. I have all the time in the world for you.”

Leo smiled. That was what he loved about Percy. Whatever happened, he never left Leo hanging. Taking a deep breath the Latino started to explain everything that had happened yesterday.


	5. The Wise Boy and the Centaur

4\. The Wise Boy and the Centaur

 

Chiron hummed worried as he galloped up and down the streets. This whole mission was getting out of hand and hoof, as far as he was concerned. It had been ridiculous to begin with, sending teenagers out to look after other teenagers, supernatural powers aside.

“Chiron, dear, you worry too much”, noted a soft voice as a furry head pushed against his legs.

Blinking a couple of times, he stared down at the tall white she-wolf circling him. Combing his fingers through her soft fur, he nodded absentmindedly. She was right, he did worry too much.

“How is it coming?”, asked the centaur.

“Why don't you see so for yourself?”, suggested Lupa with a tilt of her head.

Nodding in agreement, he made his way over to the park near which the city hall was located. It was very calm and silent these days seeing as most of the council members were on the quest. Something that had caused quite much concern at first, seeing as the four leaders – two Romans, two Greeks, each one female and one male – were gone too now. Without Luke, Thalia, Jason and Reyna to lead them, most citizens of Olympolis were fearful. For now, Lupa and Chiron were jumping in and reigning over the city, at least until the elected rulers returned. Friends of said elected rulers were helping, being the voices of the townspeople so to say and leading the mission from behind the control panels.

Who had proven to be utterly useful for this and also who had taken the places of the four leaders in some way by supporting Chiron and Lupa the most were the son of Athena Malcolm Cage and Katie Gardner, a daughter of Demeter, for the Greeks and Hylla Avila Ramírez-Arellano, the daughter of Bellona, and the son of Bacchus Dakota Elle for the Romans.

Olympolis was divided into different partitions, seeing as some Greeks disliked Romans there was a district in the West called New Athens where only Greeks lived, it's counterpart being New Rome on the farthest East side of the city. The district in the North was where mostly families lived, while the district in the South was the middle between East and West, where children and teenagers without families, demigods of Greek and Roman origins alike, lived. The heart of the city was where all the important and big buildings were. The city hall, the schools, the training spots and even a very impressive lake.

“Chiron! Where are you going?”, asked a panting satyr as he caught up to him.

“Grover”, nodded Chiron in acknowledgment. “I want to see how our temporary leaders are doing.”

“Oh, then you're going in the wrong direction”, grinned the young nymph holding hands with Grover. “Seeing as all of Malcolm's roommates are out of the city, Katie is currently staying at his place. She told me yesterday when we met for a coffee. Hylla took her anger upon not being part of the quest by sparring with Zoe. And I guess Dakota is still hungover from his party with Castor, Pollux and the tricksters last night. So your best shot would be the Owl Building.”

“Very convenient”, nodded Chiron grateful. “Thank you, Juniper. They are living in the same apartment complex. That will safe me time.”

“If... I may ask, why are you looking for them?”, asked Grover casually.

Grover and Juniper accompanied Chiron as the centaur turned around to head to the Southern district of the city. “It's... a feeling I've had last night.”

“A... feeling?”, repeated the satyr confused. “What kind of feeling?”

“As though a storm is coming”, muttered Chiron with a dark shadow on his face. “Things are happening, I assume. I hope there are news from our searching parties.”

“That doesn't sound good”, mumbled Juniper worried, squeezing Grover's hand. “I hope the others will complete their search soon and return.”

“So do I”, nodded the centaur. “So do I...”

 

/break\

 

Katie was not truly pleased. She could be though. She actually had the potential and the valid chance of being thoroughly pleased. After all, all of her boyfriend's roommates were out on a mission. Which meant that with Chris, Clarisse and Reyna gone, Malcolm had the whole apartment to himself. And that wasn't just the promise of lots and lots of sex, but also a chance at having some serene and peaceful moments to themselves. Which was a nice change for Katie, it was actually a hundred times better than sharing a room with her younger sister Miranda and sharing the apartment with the useless trickster brothers Connor and Travis. But it had been the arrangement they had been in ever since they had arrived in Olympolis as children and those rooming arrangements only got adjusted in extreme situations (if the Stolls continued like that, it would lead to a very extreme situation though because may the gods grand them mercy, Katie was going to kill them one of these days and Clarisse would help her with that). Of course she dreamed of one day moving into the Northern district together with Malcolm, but what with the nearing war, all family-planning needed to be delayed, at least until peace was ensured again.

“Katie?”, asked Malcolm in a slightly shy voice, knocking on the bathroom door.

The daughter of Demeter on the other side of the door huffed. “No. You stay busy with your researches, I will be taking a nice, long and relaxing bubble bath. Without you.”

“But Katie”, whined the blonde male with a pout. “Please? I'm finished, I swear.”

“You're a child of Athena, you're _never_ finished with your researches”, muttered Katie and smiled slightly. “It's part of the reason why I love you, after all. You don't have to stop on my behalf. I know you're itching to learn everything there is about this Perseus.”

There was a moment of silence, then a thump as though Malcolm had hit his head against the door. “Thanks, Kats. That is exactly why I love you. Still... I'm sorry for ruining our night like that...”

“Oh, I don't blame you. I blame di Angelo”, replied the brunette girl nonchalantly.

She smirked slightly as she shed her green tunic and threw her braided hair over her shoulder before climbing into the filled bath tube. She could hear the slow steps of her boyfriend, who was most likely leaving to get back to his bedroom and continue his work.

 

/break\

 

“For the love of the gods, where exactly are you bringing me, Dare? I am tired, I am hungry and I have no one to shout at aside from you. So you better tell me that we're there yet, or else...”

“We're not there yet, Tavy. Now be a good boy and shut the Hades up, or else”, the redheaded girl threw her companion a warning glare as she let her sentence hang in the air.

The blonde young man stared for a moment, but he remained silent otherwise. Huffing annoyed, he crossed his arms over his chest and turned to glare out of the window. The redhead giggled at the childish reaction of his friend. He really wasn't good when it came to being ordered around or not getting what he wanted. The spoiled, little Brit, as she liked to call him. Most others called him the Great Augur of New Rome, though. Then again, most others feared him. Mostly so because they didn't know Octavian Simmons as well as she did. He may be scary and powerful and temperamental, but if you dare to talk back and keep him in check, you had no problems with him. A good thing that she was, through and through, a Dare. She was his counterpart, the Oracle of Delphi, the seer of New Athens. And one of the very, very few people who did give the arrogant augur counter, which had led to quite the explosive fights at first and led to them being inseparable best friends (even though Octavian would rather die than admit that).

“Can you not at least tell me where we are going?”, huffed Octavian, his fingers tapping against the window, eyebrows drawn down. I am missing out on Austin's double chocolate strawberry-raspberry cream cake and Kayla's peppered rump-steak with red cabbage and potatoes and you know I only get that on my birthday. Now explain to me why exactly I am spending my birthday in a car, in the burning heat of the desert, instead of with my Greek relatives.”

Rachel bit her lips hard to keep from bursting into laughter. The arrogant, mightier-than-thou augur, who always loved to act like nothing mattered to him, actually enjoyed when Will, Austin and Kayla pampered him on his birthday, together with Rachel and Luke. The problem with Octavian was that he did care and that he wanted to belong and to be important to others, to have a family and friends, but due to his loveless family back in England, he had never learned how to work with his feelings and how to express them.

“It's a surprise, dumbo”, huffed the oracle with one raised eyebrow. “Just sit still and wait.”

 

/break\

 

“Where _is_ Tavy?”, huffed the blonde daughter of Apollo, running through the kitchen.

She was wearing an apron, her cheeks dusted with flour, glaring around at the other four people hurrying around her. There was her girlfriend and roommate Nyssa, washing the potatoes in the sink. Her big brother Will and his boyfriend Jake were running from the living room over to the kitchen and back, cleaning everything and setting the table. Her younger brother Austin was still busy with the double chocolate whatever cake he always made for their older Roman cousin-thing (they weren't sure on the exact terms, seeing as he was a legacy of their father). Panting slightly, Kayla collapsed on a chair, crossing her arms over her chest. It was normal for their apartment to be so busy, seeing as she was sharing it with her girlfriend and her brothers, but on such days, on birthdays of their family and friends, it was just a little more lively. These days it was actually even a little calmer than normally, because Will spend practically all of his time over at Jake's place, because Luke, Ethan and Leo were on a mission and Jake had the apartment to himself. Sometimes it _was_ annoying that they had to share their apartments with three others, but most of the time Kayla enjoyed living with her girlfriend and two of her brothers.

“I've seen him and Rachel leaving their apartment complex a couple of hours ago, I suppose you guys can just pack it up again”, interrupted another voice as the apartment door opened.

“Lee! Michael!”, exclaimed Austin with a bright smile and jumped up to hug the two oldest sons of Apollo. “Wait, what do you mean they left? Where to? Why?”

“Rachel said something about having a special surprise for Octavian”, replied Lee, combing his fingers through his short, blonde hair. “She also remarked that it may help his mood-swings.”

“How in the world does she plan on managing that?”, snorted the black-haired son of Apollo next to him wryly, raising one eyebrow. “As long as she hasn't tracked Luke down, that won't work.”

“Hush, don't be mean”, chided Kayla, waving her spoon threateningly into her brothers' faces. “I don't want to picture Nyssa packing her stuff and leaving for a dangerous quest for months. And I completely believe Will would be totally moody too if Jake would do it too.”

“That's all nice and dandy”, huffed Nyssa with a frown, gesturing wildly around the kitchen. “But what are we going to do with all of that now?!”

“I suppose... we have to put it into the freezer...?”, suggested her brother with a shrug.

“I'm going to kick both their asses for leaving us hanging like that!”, muttered Kayla annoyed.

 

/break\

 

Malcolm groaned, his fingers clawed into his golden locks. Next to him did the empty coffee cups pile up, surrounded by sheets of paper filled with notes and occasionally stained with coffee. He had done everything in his powers to research this Sparkling Diamond and after about five hours of fighting his way through jewelry, he had finally found a lead on the Purple Oyster and it's employees. What he had found out was frustrating and kind of depressing. The knocking on the door was a gods' send blessing for him, because it gave him the opportunity to leave his researches for a moment at least. Though as he opened the door, he was not as grateful anymore.

“Chiron? What... can I do for you?”, frowned the son of Athena confused.

“Hello, Malcolm”, greeted the centaur amused. “I came to ask how you're doing. What with the search and everything. I am well aware that Hylla can be... complicated to work with and that Dakota is too easily distracted by festivities. And I doubt you have much to say against Kathryn.”

The blonde blushed and played with the hair on the base of his neck. “Well, she's my girlfriend and the law has it that the girlfriend is always right, eh?” He chuckled lightly and got out of the way for Chiron to enter. “But yeah, it's... not a dream job for me. I really hope Bianca and Thalia will return soon to take over again... I'm freaking exhausted...”

“Being the Wise Boy around here”, nodded Chiron slowly. “Be honest with me, how are you holding it together? You shoulder more responsibility than most.”

“It's... straining”, mumbled the blonde, rubbing his face. “Nico called last night, saying he thinks they have a lead on the child of Poseidon... I've been doing researches ever since that...”

“A lead?”, asked the centaur with curious eyes. “What did you find?”

“Not very much, that's the problem”, admitted Malcolm, playing with his hands. “The one he is suspecting is a boy called Perseus Ugliano, living with his stepfather ever since his mother died after a car-crash a couple of years ago. His father is the owner of a... very exquisite establishment called the Purple Oyster, mostly dancing and singing, but... for guests with the right amount of money, there is more in than a simple dance. So yeah, basically, his stepfather sells him out for money ever since he reached adulthood, at least officially. But since the mother died a few years prior to that, I think it started earlier...”

“That is very sad for the boy”, nodded Chiron slowly, calculating his words. “But did you find something that indicated that he indeed is a demi-god, much more a child of Poseidon?”

The centaur got as comfortable as possible on the couch, staring curiously at the scattered notes all over the place and the disheveled son of Athena. The poor boy truly looked as though he hadn't slept in the last twenty-four hours. This wasn't what he wished for the demi-gods in this city, he had been so relieved that peace had lasted for so long.

“That car accident where his mother died, their car drove over a bridge. His mother drowned, but he lived. Even though the rescue-team only came hours later”, stated Malcolm with a frown. “No one can explain how the boy had lived that long, they just put it off as a miracle or assumed that there had been an air bubble caught in the car. But what with Nico's assumption, it would be easily explained by his ability to breath underwater.”

“What was it that made Nico assume that the boy is a child of Poseidon to begin with?”

“A very strong form of charmspeak, at first they had thought he was a child of Venus or Aphrodite, but he said that the kid managed to pull the whole room in and made them forget everything around them. It reminded him of the sirens and mermaids. I... had wanted to call you this morning, but somehow the day flew by while doing researches... Sorry...”

“No need to apologize”, chuckled the centaur. “What else did you find out?”

“Charmspeak, even though today widely known as an ability of children of Venus or Aphrodite, had originally been a specialty of children of the sea, just like Aphrodite herself”, started Malcolm to answer. “Yet they differ. Those who inherited the power from their mother, who had only inherited them herself, can influence people, like a mild form of mind control, giving them the ability to project their objectives into the minds of those they control. While children of the sea control in a mind-numbing way, making the people who hear the voice blind for everything else, stirring a kind of obsession. That's how they describe Perseus, the Siren of the club, the Sparkling Diamond.”

 

/break\

 

“What is a Sparkling Diamond and what am I supposed to do with it?”

The blonde augur glared irritated as he laid sprawled on a giant bed with purple sheets made of silk. Rachel chuckled amused as she stood in the doorway, giving him one of those utterly annoyed knows-it-all grins. How much he hated those. First she kidnapped him on his birthday, then she drove them to gods know where and how she wouldn't even tell him what it was about.

“You were in severe need of a change in scenery”, hummed the redhead. “And in need of a distraction. You work yourself into exhaustion because of the pending doom, one augury after the other. Olympolis is running out of stuffed toys because of that. You get onto everybody's nerve, even more so than normally. So please, do all of us a favor and _enjoy_ this evening.”

He just wanted to open his mouth to voice his protests once again, but the Oracle was already out of the room again, instead someone else entered. He must have looked very stupid, what with his mouth hanging open and certainly a little drool collecting in the corner of his mouth. The boy who entered must have been around eighteen, raven hair framing a soft yet sharp face with full, rosy lips and the most mesmerizing sea-green eyes possible. The only clothes covering his curvy frame was a light, nearly see-through tunic the color of sea-foam.

“I am the Sparkling Diamond”, smiled the boy charmingly, his cheeks flushing lightly. “And your friend paid good money for you to get... thoroughly satisfied.”

Octavian stared as the boy closed the door behind him and walked up to the bed, climbing it in slow-motion. The gorgeous teen came closer, straddling the augur's hips. That at least explained what Rachel had been talking about. It was true, he did get quite annoying when he didn't get laid for too long and Luke had been gone for too many weeks to count now. It was no secret that the two of them shared an open relationship, what with Luke constantly hitting on the adorable Latino he was sharing an apartment with (and if Jake wouldn't be Leo's roommate and protect his baby brother's virginity so vigorously, Luke would have screwed the kid in every position possible). But the young son of Hephaestus wasn't really Octavian's type, too jumpy and insecure. Actually, there wasn't really anyone in Olympolis he truly desired. But this gorgeous being on top of him, with the mischievous green eyes and the confident smirk. Rachel had paid for the boy, but the boy looked like he was just on the way to gaining his own price too.

“You're a diamond?”, questioned Octavian with one raised eyebrow, slowly resting his hands on the firm behind of the boy. “You don't look like a diamond to me. Not very sparkling.”

The boy laughed, a raw, luscious sound from the back of his throat. He rested his head on Octavian's shoulder, his breath tickling the blonde's neck, making him shudder. A pleasant smell, as fresh as the sea, so salty and rich, filled the augur's nostrils.

“Not sparkling maybe, but as unique, beautiful and expensive as a diamond”, smirked the boy.

“You're... a fascinating being”, muttered Octavian, licking his suddenly very dry lips. “I'm sure you can make this night very memorable and relaxing for me.”

“I guarantee that you will forget your own name by the end of the night”, growled the Sparkling Diamond, his teeth tugging on Octavian's earlobe, curious fingers working on his clothes. “They say I have that effect on people. I'm a very... captivating person. Will you let me capture you?”

“Uhu”, nodded the blonde, lost for words. “I mean, I would like to see you try.”

“Mh... I like your voice”, murmured the boy, tilting his head curiously. “You're British, right? I love accents. You could say... I have a weakness for them.”

“Well then, god bless the queen”, chuckled Octavian and turned them around to rest between the Diamond's legs, licking his lips greedily. “This certainly is better than tea time, my dear.”


	6. The Diamond, the Beauty Queen and the Accountant

5\. The Diamond, the Beauty Queen and the Accountant

There was one thing Percy could agree on. This was better than tea time. He moaned loudly as the blonde Brit hit his prostate over and over again. This was the part of his job that he loved. His costumers weren't the disgusting, fat drinkers that wouldn't be able to get someone without paying for them. His costumers were the rich men that needed distraction from their work or their wives and paid for the secrecy. Much to Percy's enjoyment they were mostly very good looking. And he really enjoyed sex. It would be nice to sleep with someone who was actually having feelings for him, yes, but he couldn't have everything, he supposed. So for now, this must be enough.  
“Ha—arder”, moaned the green-eyed boy blissfully.  
“Your wish is my command”, growled the blonde, his accent even thicker.  
Cunning fingers were playing with Percy's nibbles as teeth started to torture his neck. The Brit's thrusts were hard and fast, hitting target and stimulating Percy's sensitive inner walls. The blue eyes sparkled with lust and desire, as far as Percy could judge this looked like another pleased customer. The blonde growled into Percy's ear as he chocked the Diamond's dick with his hands, jerking it vigorously. Groaning in pleasure, Percy pushed up into the touch until he came. The man above him huffed at the tightening feeling of Percy clenching down on him and ejaculated as he was seated as deep within the boy as possible. Panting hard, the blonde slowly pulled out. Collapsing on the bed, right next to Percy, the Brit peeled the condom off and tied it.  
“Whatever Rachel paid for you, you are worth every penny”, grunted the blonde, licking his lips.  
“Thank you”, grinned Percy like a Cheshire cat and stretched some.  
He was staying there, letting the blonde Brit caress his hair and neck until his customer was sound asleep. Over the years, Percy had perfected the art of sneaking out of the bed and getting dressed without waking the customers. Dressed again, he got out of the room and tiptoed down the stairs. Leaving the bedrooms for services behind, he could already hear the music from the club. But instead of heading there, he turned toward the backrooms. The quarters of the employes.  
“Hey, girls!”, grinned Percy as he entered the locker rooms.  
His fellow dancers were all present. His sisters by heart. There was Silena Beauregard, the gorgeous French girl with the long, for now blonde hair (she loved dyeing her hair). The oldest of their group, kind of the mother to them all. Always tending to their broken hearts or little troubles with a soft smile and just the right words. She was sitting there, wearing a pink, short dress and combing her hair. Next to her sat the second oldest of them, Drew Tanaka, the beautiful Asian of their group. Her black hair was braided tightly, she was wearing a school-girl dress and giving Percy a dismissive wave as greeting. Piper McLean, their native American girl of choice with her blue strands in her brunette hair and the falcon feathers braided into it, was talking animatedly with Calypso Nightshade, their chosen brunette around here. The two youngest, Lacy Hunnigan and Mitchell Logan, were playing some kind of card-game. She was the younger Silena, the other blonde between them. And he was the other side of Percy. Percy was lean and muscular, but certainly not too muscular, he still needed to appeal to men, after all (or that was what their 'boss' had said), but Mitchell was the fine, soft and feminine boy, small and shy. They had something for everyone – native American, Asian, with French accent, blonde, brunette, black-haired, feminine boy and him, the star, the 'perfect choice', as most of his customers claimed.  
“How was your latest customer?”, asked Piper as she looked up at him.  
“Good”, purred Percy and licked his lips. “A British gentleman with blonde hair.”  
“Oh, he always loves the blondes”, snorted Drew and rolled her eyes.  
“And the ones with accents”, giggled Calypso amused.  
“I'll go and hit the showers”, smiled Percy and waved at them.  
Piper stood abruptly and walked over to the green-eyed boy. “I'll come with you. Could use a shower too after that last one... Besides, it's been a while since we last had some time for some girls talk, just you and me, Perce.”  
The native American grinned and wrapped one arm around Percy's shoulders. They, Drew and Calypso were about the same age, between eighteen and twenty. So the four of them spend much time together. Percy nodded in agreement, laying one arm around her waist. As they entered the big shower room, he had his head rested against her shoulder.  
“So, what's bothering you, Beauty Queen?”, teased the green-eyed boy.  
“Nothing is bothering me!”, huffed the native American, ruffling his hair. “I just really need a shower. I'm so sick of this whole... place. Of everything.”  
“Says the one who never actually sleeps with the guys”, snorted Percy amused. “Because you manage to 'sweet talk' them into going and paying without fucking. Why ever.”  
“Because I don't like guys”, shrugged Piper awkwardly and got undressed. “Help me with the bra.”  
“A girl that can't open her own bra”, joked the green-eyed boy. “But you being gay wasn't what I meant. I meant, how you get those men to go without demanding the paid-for intercourse.”  
“I don't know”, shrugged Piper thoughtful. “Never thought about it. My dad used to say, always stay grateful for the things life gives you and don't question them, because the good things will falter way too early then.”  
“Suppose that's true”, nodded Percy slowly and shed his robe. “But... if you're so sick of this place, then why do you stay? I mean, he is not your step-father. You can go, if you want.”  
“I could, probably”, agreed Piper, opening her braids to get the feathers out before showering. “When I started working here, it was because I needed the money. Because I wanted to start my own life, not in the shadow of my dad. Now I'm staying because of you guys. You've grown to me like a second family. I couldn't abandon you.”  
“You're so sweet”, chimed Percy and leaned in to kiss her cheek. “My ruffian girl.”  
They entered two shower cabins next to each other. Turning the water on, Percy sighed in relief. Even if he had customers that weren't satisfying for him, that he couldn't stand, the shower afterwards would always turn everything better. Water gave him strength, Drew used to roll her eyes at that and tell him that it was just that refreshing and clean feeling it gave him. But he would take bets that it was more, it was physical strength, he could feel it. Even though he knew it sounded crazy. Then again, there was scarcely anything in his life that didn't sound crazy.  
“It's funny, though”, chuckled Piper after a little while. “I left home and started working here, because I needed the money to get my life started. To head out into the world and find a family, a place of my own with people I'd love and who would love me. In the end, I didn't have to leave this place at all, because the people I love are all here.”  
“Don't you miss... more?”, frowned Percy, turning to glare at the wall separating them. “I mean, I love you guys too. You're the family I haven't had since my mom died and Leo moved out... But... don't you want love, real love? True love?”  
“Who says I don't have that here?”, Percy could hear the smile in her voice.  
“You know I will be assuming that you're secretly banging Drew until you tell me what's really going on”, warned Percy with a smile of his own. “Anyway, love isn't the only thing. I mean, you could see the world. Everything. Every place. Don't you want to see it?”  
“No. I mean, sure, the world certainly is interesting, but... I'm content here. Someone has got to watch out for Lacy and Mitchell and has to keep you and Drewsie entertained”, replied Piper. “Say, what brings all of this on, all of a sudden? That's so unlike you.”  
“There were those... two guys, earlier. Those two hot guys. Not that that matters now, I mean, they were talking about stuff, secret stuff. It sounded adventurous”, whispered Percy wistfully.  
“Adventurous?”, snorted Piper amused. “You're a weird one, Jackson.”  
Percy smiled softly at the affectionate nickname. It had been his mother's maiden name. His girls always used it to remind him that he wasn't bound to his stepfather. That there was something good, had been something good in his life.  
“I just... dream of the ocean and the beach and adventures”, shrugged Percy with a sigh. “It's not my fault Annie keeps bringing those fantasy books with her and forces me to read...”  
“I'll talk to her about that”, grunted Piper, obviously still amused. “So you want adventure? Why don't you run away then? I mean, he had the legal right to get you collected when you were underage, but if I recall that blurry night two months ago correctly, you're off-age. You're free to leave and live as you please. Why do you stay here?”  
Percy opened his mouth to answer, just to close it again with a frown. Why was he staying? Maybe because he was too used to it by now. To living here, to being controlled by Gabe. Or maybe because he loved his little family just as much as Piper did.  
“I don't want to be alone”, whispered Percy, sounding all like the broken, little boy he had been when his mom had passed away. “I don't want to be alone...”  
“Well duh, dumbo”, chuckled Piper, turning the water off and walking over to his cabin. “Every hero in every book goes on adventures in a group. The hero always leaves with the awesome sidekick and the hot girl. I think I'd make a pretty awesome sidekick, wouldn't you agree?”  
She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and nudged him affectionately. Percy snorted slightly and turned the water off. The two of them left the showers to get towels from the shelves opposite the shower cabins. Drying off, they walked back into the locker room.  
“Beckendorf! You know you're not supposed to be in here!”, chided Piper and threw her towel.  
It hit the dark-skinned, broad-shouldered man square in the face, even though their bodyguard/bouncer tried to hide behind his girlfriend. Silena laughed softly, patting his head. Percy smiled nostalgically as he went over to his locker to pick his jeans and shirt out. If Silena was their mother, Charles Beckendorf was their protective dad. Percy took a moment to stare at them fascinated. Especially Lacy and Mitchell had latched onto the couple, seeking their protection and guidance. Drew and Calypso were laughing at their childish antics. Getting fully dressed, Percy left the locker room without another word, avoiding getting their attention. He tiptoed over to the offices and sneaked into the one labeled with Accountant. A blonde girl was sitting there, hunched over a broad, dark desk, deeply concentrated. Her hair was put up into a bun, black-rimmed glasses perched on her nose, a gray blouse and gray trousers completing the wallflower look the girl had going on. Percy smiled to himself as he cautiously walked up to her and wrapped his arms around her shoulders, resting his chin on top of her head. She jumped slightly in surprise before turning to glare at him, pushing her glasses up some.  
“Don't do that! How often did I tell you to knock?!”, groaned the blonde.  
“Sorry, Annie”, smiled the green-eyed boy. “But I really need to ask you a question.”  
“Okay?”, nodded Annabeth with one raised eyebrow. “What is it, Perce? I have to finish those.”  
“Do you think Piper would be a good sidekick?”, asked Percy seriously.  
“What kind of question is that?”, snorted Annabeth amused and turned to look at him. “Come here. Take a seat. You're going crazy again. What's going on?”  
“Nothing is going on!”, grunted Percy and squeezed onto the chair next to Annabeth. “I just... Nothing is going on. That's the problem. I want to... have something going on. I want adventure. I want to see the beach and travel the sea and roam the country.”  
“You've always been talking about adventures”, smiled Annabeth fondly, patting his head as though he was a little child. “But you've never sounded that... serious... So what's going on?”  
“There were those two guys yesterday”, sighed Percy softly. “They were being all secretive, but not like businessmen or anything, but more like... like spies. They were talking about looking for something and it was just... It sounded like action, like adventure. I want action and adventure.”  
“What do you say, Chase? Pack your stuff, it's time to leave this rat's nest behind us.”  
Percy and Annabeth turned to look at the door. Piper was casually leaning against the door-frame, wearing a baggy, pink shirt and jeans dungarees, her hair choppily cut and pointing into every directions. She looked like someone trying really hard to be a tomboy.  
“Well, I've been waiting for that command for years now”, smiled Annabeth, her focus on Piper, but her hand grabbing Percy's to squeeze it. “You know that, Perce.”  
“Yeah. I know”, whispered Percy and nodded slowly.  
Annabeth had been his only friend ever. When his mother had died and his stepfather had forced him to work at this place, she had started as Gabe's accountant. Because Gabe had no freaking idea how to lead a business, how to take care of the numbers. While Annabeth was a genius. She had always stuck around, because of Percy.  
“But are you really ready to leave?”, asked Annabeth seriously and stood. “You're a family person. Could you really leave Silena and the others? And this place? Even though it's your golden cage, in a way, it is also your home. Can you really leave it?”  
“You're my oldest friend and my older sister by anything but blood, Annie”, smiled Percy, grasping one of Piper's hands with his free hand. “And Pipes is my twin removed by blood, as far as I'm concerned. I know Silena and Beckendorf will take good care of the others. They'll be fine without me. Without us? And isn't it usual for children our age to leave the nest? Spread our wings?”  
“Or fins, in your case”, joked Piper, ruffling his hair once again. “So we will do this?”  
“I will go wherever Percy goes. That's a closed deal”, stated Annabeth before taking a slow breath. “You tagging along is just an added bonus, Pipes.”  
The blonde blushed slightly and turned her attention toward Percy, staring at him questioningly. He bit his lips. This started to feel like an actual adventure. They weren't just quitting their job and taking a flight somewhere, they were running away. Percy took a breath to gather bravery.  
“Then it's time to show you something. The best way for us to leave. But first, we need to pack. And we really need to say good bye to the others”, stated Percy in a firm voice. “Meet you guys in the break room in half an hour when everyone gathers for lunch?”  
“Okay”, nodded Annabeth with a smile, right before frowning. “Wait. If Piper is the sidekick, does that make me the pretty girl in this?! How is that a thing? I'm the brains! She's the looks!”  
“If anyone is the looks, it's Percy!”, objected Piper with a glare.  
“Then I will be the hero, you can be the sidekick and Percy is the girl”, nodded Annabeth.  
“How am I the girl if I'm the only not-girl in this?!”, exclaimed Percy, wildly waving his arms.

/break\

“Are you sure about this?”, whispered Silena as she hugged Percy tightly.  
“Yes”, replied Percy determined, turning to look at Piper, who was being hugged by Drew.  
Lacy and Mitchell were sitting in chairs, crying silently, being comforted by Annabeth. Charles was standing there, looking a little lost, while Calypso was trying to pry Drew off Piper so she would get a turn to hug the native American girl.  
“But will you be alright?”, frowned Silena concerned.  
“As long as we stick together, we will me”, smiled Percy. “You... just... watch over the others. And don't tell Gabe anything. Act as if you have no idea about anything, please? And... I love you.”  
“Oh, sweetheart, I love you too”, sighed Silena, planting a kiss on top of his head. “I'll miss you.”  
“We'll write”, promised Percy with a grin. “Post cards. From every place we see.”  
“I'd expect at least that”, grunted Charles with a glare, pulling Percy into a bone-crushing hug. “And call. As soon as you get into trouble, you will call, you hear me? We'll take the next fly to everywhere to help you. Just stay safe.”  
“Thanks”, smiled Percy, taking a deep breath. “Well, time to go, girls. Before Gabe gets back.”  
“Okay”, nodded Piper, grabbing Annabeth's hand. “We love you guys.”  
“We love you too”, sobbed Lacy, rubbing her face.  
“We'll miss you”, added Mitchell, staring at them teary-eyed.  
“Don't do anything dangerous!”, warned Calypso with worried eyes.  
“Yeah, right”, snorted Drew and rolled her eyes. “They're going to dive right into every dangerous situation that'll present itself to them and Jackson will be all 'Oh, let's poke it with a stick'!”  
“That was a very accurate impression of him”, grinned Piper amused. “We'll miss you guys too.”  
Percy bit his lips as he waved them a last time before the trio headed out of the break-room. Taking a deep breath, he took the lead out of the Purple Oyster. He was going to share his biggest secret with them. Now everything depended on one tiny little thing. Either they were going to have the best escape plan ever and manage to get away before Gabe returned and noticed that Percy was gone, or... Percy had gone crazy and Piper and Annabeth better send him to a mental hospital.  
“Okay, what I'm going to show you will sound crazy. And it'll look crazy. If you can see it, gods I hope you can see it”, muttered Percy, chewing his lips nervously as they reached the garage.  
“We don't have a car, Percy”, frowned Piper. “Unless you want to show us an invisible car. Then your odd rambling would even be justified.”  
“It's not a car. Actually, I think an invisible car would be making more sense than that”, sighed Percy and closed his eyes tightly as he opened the garage. “Girls, meet Blackjack.”  
“Hey, boss! You're early today! Did you bring apples? Why did you bring females? I don't want females. I want apples. Do they have apples?”, whined the beautiful, black pegasus.  
Percy grinned and stepped into the garage to pat Blackjack's muzzle. “Hey, Blacky. No, I don't have apples, sorry. But I want you to meet Piper and Annabeth.”  
“That is... impossible”, whispered Annabeth in disbelief and stepped closer to touch the broad wings. “It's... They're mythical creatures, they don't exist!”  
“Who cares if they exist? He's beautiful”, marveled Piper, patting the pegasus.  
“I like the one with the feathers. She's nice”, whined Blackjack, nuzzling her.  
“Oh, I'm so glad you can see him”, sighed Percy in relief. “I really thought I was going crazy.”  
“What do you mean?”, asked Annabeth curiously, tilting her head.  
“There was this customer who paid extra to take me with him to a horse race as arm candy”, started Percy slowly. “And I saw him there. But... no one else seemed to see his wings. They were all looking at me crazy. And then he asked me if I can free him, so I spend... a huge amount of my money on buying him. I've been hiding him here ever since.”  
“When you say he asked you to free him, you don't mean the pegasus... right?”, asked Piper slowly.  
“Oh”, muttered Percy with a crestfallen look. “So you can't hear him. Well, at least you can see him. That makes me only half-crazy, I guess...”  
“You're not crazy, Percy”, reassured Annabeth, patting his arm. “Believe me, I've seen crazier things in my life already. But... I've never seen anything up that close... He's fascinating.”  
“I think I like them both, boss”, contemplated Blackjack with a whine.  
“Figures”, chuckled Percy, stroking the black mane. “Anyway, I figured we could take him with us. Start our journey right now. We could fly over to the coast and then, I don't know. We would have some space between us and... and Gabe and then we could think about where to go?”  
“I can't even ride! How am I supposed to fly?!”, yelped Annabeth with a worried face.  
“I'll take the lead in this one”, grinned Percy broadly. “Blacky says I'm a natural.”  
He climbed onto the black pegasus, caressing Blackjack's broad neck and beckoning Annabeth and Piper to join him. Annabeth followed, even though reluctantly, and Piper sat up next.  
“Good thing we all are more of the skinny kind and don't need much room... or weight much...”  
“I demand many delicious apples for this!”, complained Blackjack as they headed out of the garage.


	7. Freeing Doves

6\. Freeing Doves

 

Nico was glaring darkly as he was stalking up and down the hotel suit. Clarisse and Reyna were occupying the bathroom. Where other girls needed time there to pretty up, they needed it to armor up. Lou was packing some potions and things that 'may be useful'. And Chris and Jason were glaring at him from their spots on the couch.

“Why is he doing that, Jason? Make him stop”, grunted the son of Hermes annoyed.

“He's anxious. I'm too, but I guess I'm better at not walking a hole in the carpet”, chuckled Jason amused, staring at Nico with soft eyes. “Hey, it'll be okay. Chiron and Lupa gave us the okay to go in there, after everything Malcolm found out about this Ugliano-guy, we can tear that blasted place down, send the humans on their way home, take the pretty diamond with us and also rescue other demigods that may work there. By the end of the day, you and me will have Percy with us.”

Nico stopped to stare at his boyfriend thoughtful. He liked the name. Percy. They had bugged Malcolm for every information possible on their gorgeous Sea Prince this morning. And by now the son of Hades was more determined than ever to lay a claim on Percy. Someone as mesmerizing shouldn't we walking around alone like that. He needed training and guidance. Nico was pretty sure that Percy wasn't even aware of what an effect he had on the people around him, that his powers were what hypnotized the people when he was singing.

“Can we _please_ go now? I want him away from that nasty place as soon as possible”, frowned Nico a little upset. “The longer we wait, the more could possibly happen.”

“Nothing is going to happen, you pansy!”, grunted Clarisse annoyed, throwing a tooth brush at him.

 

/break\

 

Nothing was going to happen, his ass. Nico's temper was at its highest as he was looming over Gabe Ugliano, his Stygian-iron sword pointed at the disgusting man's throat.

“Where. Is. Percy?”, growled the son of Hades dangerously, the room darkening.

He didn't care much for what the rest of his team were doing – they had said something about children of Aphrodite and taking care of them. All Nico wanted was Percy.

“I—I don't know”, whimpered the man pathetically. “The useless brat has been gone all day-”

Nico growled, pressing his sword deeper, cutting flesh. “He's not useless. Don't talk about him like that, you piece of worthless shit!”

“Di Angelo! Calm down”, growled Clarisse as she entered with a high, broad black guy.

“No hurting mortals, you know the drill”, added Reyna unimpressed.

“Nikki”, whispered Jason, grabbing his boyfriend's hand. “Calm down for a second.”

“But Percy was in his care and now he's gone!”, exclaimed the son of Hades furiously. “Yesterday, he has still been here and now he's gone, because that piece of shit can't keep an eye on his charge!”

“Hello, I'm Silena”, smiled a beautiful blonde woman as she pushed her way between Nico and the man. “And you will calm down now, yes? We will sit down together and drink a tea.”

“Yes, a tea sounds nice”, nodded the Ghost Prince suddenly very calm, blinking as he sat down on a chair. “Wait. How did you do that?! I don't even like tea!”

He glared at the cup of tea that was given to him by another blonde, much younger though. Jason was standing behind him with his hands on Nico's shoulders, not that that would keep the son of Hades from standing up if he truly wanted to. The thing that really kept him grounded at that moment was that Jason was standing behind him – standing with one of his feet on Gabe's throat. That was acceptable. Now, a little calmer, he took a look around. Opposite him sat the blonde woman, Silena. Behind her stood the broad black guy Clarisse had brought in. Then there was a petite blonde girl, a petite brunette boy, an auburn-haired female around Nico's age and a slightly arrogant looking Asian female. Clarisse was standing at the door, guarding it.

“Well? You going to talk or are you forcing me to actually drink that tea?”, frowned Nico.

“Reyna, Lou and Chris are taking care of bringing the humans to the authorities and see the underaged ones being tended to. Those are the demigods”, grunted the daughter of Ares with a short nod to them. “Kids of Aphrodite, all of them aside from the big guy, he's Hephaestus' brat. And that one is a special case. Daughter of a titan. Zoe's sister even. She'll be happy to hear that.”

“I have a sister?”, asked the auburn-haired one hopeful.

“You'll meet her once we brought you all to the safety of Olympolis, Calypso”, nodded Jason.

“I'm Silena”, repeated the tall blonde, pretty sure that Nico hadn't been listening. “That's my boyfriend and our bodyguard, Charles Beckendorf. Those are my siblings Drew, Lacy and Mitchell. We were three more, three more demigods that is. Percy, the one you're looking for. I think he too is one of our siblings. So is Piper. And then there was our accountant, I suspect her to be a daughter of Athena. But the three of them left this morning together.”

“T—They did?”, asked Nico wide-eyed. “Why? Where to?”

“I think they left because of you”, snickered the Asian one – Drew.

“What's that supposed to mean?”, grunted Jason with a frown, his grip on Nico tightening subconsciously at that. “Where did they leave to? And what do we have to do with it?”

He stared intensely at Drew, forcing her to straighten up some and get more serious again. “Percy has been talking about how he saw those two hot guys here yesterday. A hot piece of blonde deliciousness in the surfer Ken version and his boyfriend, mister tall, dark, handsome and European. And now you two show up here, demanding Percy and busting this whole club. I don't think that's a coincident. You two must be the ones that made him so hungry for adventure again.”

“Yes, it was odd...”, nodded Calypso slowly, thoughtful. “He hasn't been talking about seeing the world and living adventures for years now, not since he stopped only being a dancer...”

“So he left for adventure?”, frowned Nico disappointed, sinking in his seat.

“He never knew about his heritage”, smiled Silena softly. “Me, Drew and Charlie, we used to go to a camp, a special place, only very small though, in New York. But it was just a summer camp and we needed a place to stay, a place to live. And when we came to be here, it was... more out of practical reasons. I could feel my siblings and see their charmspeak. We're all claimed, we know of our heritage, but Percy, he never... so we never told him. We figured we should let him believe in a world without monsters, he... had seen enough human monsters to last a lifetime already.”

“He's not a child of Aphrodite”, said Jason in an even voice. “He's the son of Poseidon.”

An eerie silence filled the room at that, the demigods staring at him in shock. Silena was the first one to regain her composure, gasping and reaching out for Nico and Jason.

“Please tell me he will be safe”, whispered the blonde pleadingly. “Please. He's a child of one of the Big Three, they're like... like special treats for monsters! Now that he's out there, he will be eaten! Please tell me he won't be eaten! Oh gods, there is danger, isn't there? That's why you were looking for him, because he is a child of Poseidon. Why?”

“Calm down, chick”, grunted Clarisse unimpressed. “He survived until now, he'll survive a while longer. But yeah, we're looking for him. And we will keep looking for him.”

“But you people have a decision to make before we can leave to find Percy”, interrupted the son of Jupiter in a slightly softer voice. “There is a safe place. Olympolis, a city full of demigods and ruled by demigods. It's protected by magic. You will get apartments, the chance to finish school or go to college, to work. You can have normal, but safe, lives. We will bring you there, if you want.”

“S... Safety sounds good”, whispered Silena unsure, looking at her younger charges. “We will come with you, if you can promise me that no one will take them away from me.”

“You can't all live together. Not from the beginning. The apartments are made for four people, the ones you get sponsored. But once you gained enough money, once you worked enough for that, you can move to a house or whatever you would want to rent”, replied Nico. “You have to understand that you can't just pick a pretty and big place if you're getting it for free, okay?”

“We do, don't worry”, smiled Silena grateful. “Thank you, for this chance.”

“Well then, move and get packed. The sooner you're ready, the sooner we can get moving”, grunted Clarisse annoyed. “Don't pack heavy. The horses won't be able to carry that much.”

Nico sighed as he watched them leave, probably to go to their rooms. He leaned back against Jason, seeking the support from his boyfriend. They had missed Percy. If they would have done as he had wanted, would have just dropped by at sunrise, they would have been able to gather Percy and leave with him together, having him with them.

“Why... Why is he so addictive...?”, whispered Nico softly. “I just want to have him. Why...?”

“The brat's a whore, that's what”, wheezed Gabe, trying to free himself from Jason's foot. “You want to screw him and once you're through with him, that will all stop again.”

Nico could hear Jason gritting his teeth, his stand on Gabe tightening if the grunting and wheezing from the man was any indication. Silence befell the room, the only noise being the whimpered desperate tries of Gabe to free himself, which only earned him more kicks. The silence lasted until a voice started to call out through the club. A voice they knew. Jason, Nico and Clarisse froze.

“Hello? Is no one bloody working here?”

Jason and Nico exchanged a glare before turning to Clarisse. The daughter of Ares sighed.

“I'll keep an eye on the piece of shit. You check what the fuck our augur is doing here.”

The couple left together in a haste, entering the vacant main room. Everything was dark and without guests or music, the club had an eerie feeling to it. In the middle of it stood a very irritated Octavian, glaring around, obviously searching for something.

“The fuck are you doing here, Simmons?”, grunted Jason irritated, crossing his arms.

The augur froze and turned to stare at the two heroes stunned. “I've had the best hole ever last night, birthday present from Rachel, and I came for a second round before we head back to Olympolis.”

“Don't shit me”, snorted Nico disbelieving, glaring. “Our oracle and our augur just so happen to be at the one place the son of Poseidon is living at? The truth this time, please.”

“The truth is that I had one of my best fucks last night and now I want more, that simple”, growled Octavian annoyed. “What do you mean the son of Poseidon is here?”

“”He... really doesn't know”, frowned Jason thoughtful.

“Then you can just go to Rachel and tell her you should leave”, grunted Nico. “The son of Poseidon had been here. Now he's gone. We're taking the other demigods with us to Olympolis, talk to Chiron and Lupa and then we'll have to start at scratch one. Just that we now know what he looks like.”

“You take the other demigods back?”, frowned Octavian, shifting. “I need to see them. I need to see him. I'm sure he's a son of Venus. He's, his stage name, it's Sparkling Diamond. Where is he?”

Nico closed his eyes and took a very deep breath. This could not be true. This little bastard had fucked their Sea Prince before them? How was that a thing? How did they deserve this?

“ _You_ fucked the son of Poseidon”, growled Jason, the lights flickering with his irritation.

Needless to say, the rest of the wait had been very awkward.

 

/break\

 

Nico was frowning as he had Drew pressed against his back. Shadow beneath him whined in protest at the additional weight, but the black pegasus had been doing that since the start of their journey. Clarisse and Fighter were carrying Charles, because the brown stallion was the strongest of the pegasi. Silena was clinging slightly nervous to Reyna, the black-haired woman obviously enjoying having a pretty blonde close by. Calypso was enjoying her ride with Tempest and Jason. Mitchell was giggling off as he was clinging to Chris, though Trickster beneath them didn't seem to mind. The last, Lacy, was with Lou, totally fascinated by her unicorn mare Wicca. This was the most awkward ride possible, but Nico was just glad the augur and the oracle were taking Rachel's car. Because if Nico were forced to have Octavian on Shadow, he would probably push the blonde 'accidentally' off on the way. He was still furious that Octavian had fucked Percy.

“Don't be so angry”, huffed the Asian behind him. “There are dozens, maybe even hundreds, of men who have fucked Perce so far, don't bother just because this one is someone you know.”

“You're a sensitive one, aren't you?”, sneered the son of Hades irritated.

“And you need a fucking so you'll stop PMSing”, snorted Drew unimpressed. “Seriously. Perce is a big boy, he can watch out for himself. He's done plenty of men before, so if you're going to throw a fuss because you're not the first animal at the water hole, then you don't deserve Percy. Because Percy is special and he deserves someone who can accept him for who he is and what his past was like. So if you're not man enough for the job, you'll have a problem with me.”

Nico blinked slightly impressed. He wouldn't have thought for the sirens to be that close, but then again, the way Silena had demanded to stay with the younger kids had been a give-away. The Ghost Prince smiled slightly, glad that regardless of what the pretty boy had been through, he had such good friends to support him. He just prayed those two that were with him right now would be as good and watch over him until Jason and Nico found him.

 

/break\

 

Malcolm frowned, glaring around his apartment. He had cleaned it three times now. It needed to be tidy and all of Katie's bras needed to be out of the way. Because his three roommates would return. He knew they would probably only be staying for one night to rest after the meeting with Lupa and Chiron, but he still needed it to look good. There was nothing worse than getting teased by Clarisse and Reyna about his sex life with Katie. And Chris wasn't much of a help there.

“You're being overly dramatic again, Mal”, sighed Katie from where she was sprawled all over his bed. “Come back here and let's enjoy the morning before-”

“They're here! They're here and they brought six new demigods!”, announced Miranda loudly.

Malcolm glared at the full-blood sister of his girlfriend. Why did she have a key anyway? Sighing slightly, he marched over at her. He knew she was happy and he understood that; her girlfriend would be around, even just for one night, it would be more than they had in weeks. Katie got dressed in record time and the three of them headed over to the city hall. Many were already gathered around as they knew some of their greatest heroes would return. Malcolm grunted, he hated pushing his way through the crowd. The daughters of Demeter followed him and as they reached the center of attention, so to speak, Miranda jumped her girlfriend, kissing Lou hungrily. Malcolm rather paid some attention to all the new faces around.

“Travis, Connor”, called Jason out. “Can you bring the pegasi to the stalls, please?

“Jake, mind getting two flats ready for moving in for them?”, continued the son of Hades. “Next to each other, if possible. And Will, please take our new residents to the hospital for the routine check-up. Can someone please get Zoe and Hylla to get them sorted on a legal level?”

“I'll see to it”, nodded Malcolm and just wanted to leave again.

“No, we need you”, grunted Nico, shaking his head. “We have things to discuss. Important things.”

Malcolm nodded shortly, following their questing heroes into the building where Chiron and Lupa were already awaiting them. The son of Athena did not have a very good feeling about this.

 

/break\

 

Silena smiled softly as she looked around the place. Her own place. It was all she had ever wanted. The kids were staying in the apartment right opposite them – Drew and Calypso sharing a room, as well as Lacy and Mitchell. Her and Charles were for now alone in the apartment, but she hoped, really hoped, that those others would find their missing trio. Annabeth and Piper could stay with them here. She had a fleeting notion that Percy would probably go with Nico and Jason, wherever they would take him. No one had ever left such an impact on the boy before, and all of that just from a short, passing moment. They had woken up something that Silena had feared to be dead. Hope. Dreams. Joy. And now Percy was out there, somewhere, living the adventures. Somehow it made her happy and proud, like a mother. But on the other hand she was just as motherly worried.

“Do you think this is it?”, whispered the daughter of Aphrodite, leaning back against her boyfriend.

“Mh?”, grunted Charles confused, wrapping his arms around her waist.

“Life”, smiled Silena, tilting her head to kiss him. “Our very personal and happy life?”

“As long as I have you”, grinned the son of Hephaestus. “Everything will be fine.”

 

/break\

 

The flat was dark and dusty as Jason opened the door and steered his already half-asleep boyfriend in. No one had been in here for months, Bianca and Thalia were on their own quest too. No one had cleaned or even opened a window, the air was thick and tasted bad to him.

“Drew said something...”, yawned Nico and stretched against his side. “She said Percy deserves someone who can handle his past and all the men he already slept with... Can... we...?”

“No idea what you're talking about, my Ghost Prince”, murmured Jason, slowly undressing his lover as they were collapsing on their bed together. “I have never seen you look at someone the way you looked at him. The two of us, we grew closer together over the course of years. But this, this kind of love at first sight. I know you better than that. I know you'll not let anything stop you from having what you want. Once you can have him, you will forget about these things, you will forget everything he may have done in the past, because you will enjoy being part of his now.”

“Okay... you're right, Jayjay”, murmured Nico, cuddling up to him. “You always are... Mh... I can't wait to share him with you... think you'll look amazing within him...”

“How do you always get horny when you're sleepy?”, groaned Jason annoyed, ruffling his boyfriend's curls. “It's just not fair. You always get me hot and bothered and then you do that. Because you've already done it, haven't you? You're asleep. Yes, you are. Just fucking great.”

The blonde spend some moments staring at his boyfriend accusingly before he stood up again to open the windows. No one living at the place had made the air sour. As he opened the windows wide, he took a moment to appreciate the view. It was nice, having a familiar skyline, recognizing the buildings, knowing who was living in the apartments that still had light on and even being able to guess what they were doing that late. It was familiar, it was his home and he had missed it.

Taking a deep breath, he enjoyed the glowing of the moon and the fresh air around him. As he heard Nico moving behind him on the bed, he turned to leave the room. Sending prayers to the gods, he opened the fridge. At least nothing had died in there, so he was grateful for that. Humming in appreciation, he took a beer out. It seemed Jake had answered his prayers. By the looks of it, the son of Hephaestus must have dropped by while they were stuck in the meeting, putting enough food for breakfast and a couple of beers in. Opening the bottle, he wrapped his lips around the head and enjoyed the cool liquid. The meeting had been going on for hours, Nico, him and the others had to retell everything that had happened and he _meant_ everything. Then the broad and long discussions as to what they were supposed to do next, at which point the appointed heads, the representatives of each god, chosen by all their siblings, had joined in. Which had only stressed everything more. Jason really hoped they would find Percy soon and get some peace. With Percy at their side.


	8. Meeting up with the Trickster Prince

7\. Meeting up with the Trickster Prince

 

Leo frowned uncomfortably and turned to look over his shoulder. Over the last few days, he constantly had the feeling of being watched. At first, he had thought it were Alabaster and Bianca, the two tended to be a little worried and motherly. But it even happened when he legitimately knew that his two friends weren't close by. By now, he was thinking that maybe there was a monster out there that preferred a little snack a la Hephaestus. Shuddering slightly, he leaned down and hugged Festus' neck tighter. Bianca and Alabaster exchanged a worried look at that.

“Are you... sure you're alright, Leo?”, asked the daughter of Hades softly.

“Uhu, totally”, mumbled Leo, clawing his fingers against the cool metal. “Where are we meeting the others, Bibi? Is there a place where I can land...?”

Bianca glared critically at the change of topic, but accepted it. “Thals said she booked a house for us in the snowy mountains. I'll guide you, I can feel her soul. It's off from civilization, so no problems hiding Festus. She said we'll take a little... vacation there.”

“Vacation?”, frowned Leo and turned a little to look at her. “We don't have time for that.”

“We do”, replied Bianca firmly. “You're overdoing it. In the past days, ever since Seattle and especially since Malcolm called and said that Jason and Nico have a lead on the son of Poseidon. It's like... you're trying to prove yourself to someone. You have bags under your eyes and you're forgetting to eat again. The last time I've seen you like that was when you were building Festus, trying to prove to the citizens of Olympolis that you're worth being part of this quest. I'm worried for you, Leo. You _need_ are break and we don't have any leads at the moment anyway. A couple of days in Canada to regroup and make plans won't be a bad thing.”

Leo knew better than to protest to the Shadow Princess' will. And Canada didn't sound half bad. He remembered Frank's Canadian accent and shuddered slightly in a pleasant way. Biting his lips, he wondered if he'd ever see the two again. Shaking his head, he rather concentrated on steering Festus, listening to Bianca's orders where to go, until he saw the snowy forests on the mountain.

Once landed, they tried to hide the giant metal beast beneath the high trees and covered it with snow so any tourist that may wander off into these parts won't grow suspicious. The mist would do the rest. Patting the golden snout a last time, Leo followed his two companions inside the small wooden house that stood all alone in the forest. Warmth filled the Latino as they entered the house. A fire was cackling in the fireplace, a big, white fur laying in front of it. A small kitchen counter was in one corner, everything down here in one big room, stairs leading up to the bedrooms, Leo guessed. Everything was a bit rusty and old-fashioned, but just as cozy and homey. On the couch behind the table that had its place near the warmth of the fireplace sat three teenagers, playing some kind of card game. A tall blonde guy with mischievous blue eyes and a handsome face, a green-eyed Japanese boy with the best pokerface Leo had ever seen in place and a punker girl with black, spikey hair with blue streaks in it and as electric blue eyes. The girl was the first one to strand, grinning broadly at them as Bianca sprinted over to throw herself at her. Thalia easily caught her girlfriend, whirling her around while kissing her.

“I – missed – you – so – much”, murmured Thalia between kisses.

The son of Hecate all the while tried to be very subtly when pushing his hand down the Japanese boy's pants. Snorting in amusement, Ethan caught the hand and glared at his boyfriend.

“Try a stunt like that again and I'll spank you”, warned the son of Nemesis unimpressed.

Grinning challenging, Alabaster shoved his free hand down the pants. “I'd like to see you trying”

“So...”, started the blonde man casually. “The house has three bedrooms.”

Leo, who had walked over to the corner of the house opposite the kitchen and right next to the backdoor, was busying himself with patting the two black animals there. Ethan's pegasus stallion, the tall and proud Balance, and Thalia's pet hell-hound Mrs. O'Leary. Technically, she was Nico's pet, but seeing as normally Nico was living with his big sister and the Grace-siblings, all four of them had her trust, so they had decided she would become the means of transportation for the two demigods who had no own pegasus/unicorn. Laying cuddled up between Mrs. O'Leary's big paws, Leo was feeding an apple to Balance. Animals had always liked him. The surprising thing however was the Bernese Mountain Dog that had been hiding a little behind the hell-hound. Leo didn't recall that one, none of them had regular pets, especially not for this mission. But the big dog was awesome. As soon as Leo had cuddled up to Mrs. O'Leary (who was treating him like a pup anyway), the Bernese had climbed up into Leo's lap and was now comfortably seated on the Latino's chest, with his paws on the boy's shoulder.

“Yes, yes. Me rooming with you, Luke. Big surprise”, muttered Leo, rolling his eyes. “Rather tell me where this cute big guy comes from. Does he like belong to the house, or what?”

The other five demigods turned to look at him quizzical. As Bianca noticed the Bernese, she squealed and rushed over, wanting to pat him. She loved all kinds of dogs and normally, they also loved her, but the Bernese started growling dangerously, wagging his tail and showing his fangs.

“Yeah. That's the reaction we've been getting too ever since we let him in”, grunted Luke, showing a bite-wound on his left arm. “That beast had just shown up in the snow as we arrived and you know how Thalia is, she was all 'oh, Bibi is going to love that one! Let's take him in, I don't want her to find a frozen dog corpse in front of the door when she arrives'. So we let him in. He has been curled up there ever since, not letting any of us close. He's a monster dog.”

“He's the cutest thing ever”, objected Leo, rubbing the big dog behind his ears. “What's your name, mh big guy? You don't have a collar... how did you get here?”

He ran his fingers through the long, soft fur, looking curiously at the dog's face. Somehow, those dark, brown eyes looked startling familiar and so much more intelligent than a normal dog's.

“Come, Leo. Let's get unpacked and showered”, ordered Bianca. “You can cuddle her up later.”

“Him”, corrected Leo as he stood and walked over to them, the dog at his heels. “He's a good boy. I think I'm going to call him Frank.” The dog barked in agreement. “You like that? Frank.”

Alabaster frowned and leaned over to Bianca to whisper. “Wasn't Frank the name of this boy he can't stop talking about? Does that mean little Leo is into bestiality...?”

The daughter of Hades laughed and hit her friend on the arm, glaring slightly. The three newly arrivals grabbed their back-packs with their clothes, weapons, food and all the little things they sometimes needed on their journey and followed the other team upstairs to be shown the rooms. Leo was not very pleased as he entered the tiny bedroom, but then again judging by the first floor it had been obvious the bedrooms wouldn't be very spacious. It had a small closet and a double bed with two nightstands, a window was showing them the view of a white-capped mountain. Luke was throwing himself onto the bed right away, his arms crossed behind his head, a smirk on his lips. Leo blushed slightly. Whenever their two groups met up, he always ended up sharing a room with the son of Hermes. Bianca wanted to be with her girlfriend, Alabaster wanted to be with his boyfriend. And Leo would be the last person to stand between his friends and their desires, the two couples didn't see each other all too often after all. It would only be a couple of nights, Leo would live through that. It wasn't that much worse than sharing a flat with Luke. Aside from the fact that there was no Jake to protect him and he was actually sharing a room – worse even, a _bed_ – with Luke.

“Bathroom is right next to ours. The others are staying in the rooms opposite, obviously”, said Luke casually. “Feel free to take a shower. Thals and I already prepared dinner, we're just going to heat it up once you guys are settled in. If you want, I can help you with the shower.”

Leo blushed and Frank beside him growled dangerously, making Luke flinch a little panicked. Grinning broadly, the Latino patted the Bernese on the head and dumped his bag next to the closet.

“I think I can manage on my own, Luke”, smiled the son of Hephaestus before leaning down. “You going to be fine too, Frank? You're not looking so clean yourself, your fur is sticky with mutt and some snow and grime. I think you need a shower too. What do you say, big guy?”

The dog yelped in agreement, pushing his nose against Leo's knee. Turning to the door, he tried to listen if the water was already running. But knowing his friends, they would first be too occupied with their better halves to leave the bedroom again. First the sex, then the shower. Then, most likely, more sex. And then perhaps dinner for Leo. With one hand on Frank's neck, he left the bedroom to get to the bathroom. The bathroom was, compared to the bedroom, spacious. Which may be because no double bed to take away all room, mused the son of Hephaestus. Closing the door – and locking it, because one time when they had been in a hotel in Las Vegas, he had opened the shower curtain to find Luke sitting on the toilet seat, staring at him with a leer – he started to slowly shed his clothes and put them in the sink. They needed a washing too, they had to use every opportunity of water and soap they got. Leo raised one eyebrow at the wagging tail of the Bernese, who was staring at him with really intense eyes, making Leo blush as though he was a voyeur.

“You're kind of strange, Frank”, hummed Leo and tilted his head, leading the dog to the shower cabin. “Now come, both of us are in severe need of a shower, big guy.”

Never before had he seen a dog more eager to get showered. Not that he wasn't grateful that Frank didn't put up a fight, but it was still kind of odd how much fun the dog was having. Once the big guy was clean again, Leo leaned down to rub him dry before taking care of himself. Showering with a giant dog watching him was a very odd experience and somehow, it made the Latino blush furiously. The Bernese was watching him a little too closely for comfort. Glad to be finished, Leo hastily got dressed again before that dog would try to jump him. Taking him by the turf of his neck, Leo led the Bernese back to the bedroom. Luke was still laying sprawled on the bed. At least until Frank climbed up and got comfortable too, nearly pushing the demigod off the bed.

“Take that beast out”, grunted the son of Hermes annoyed. “Out of the bed and even better, out of the room. He should stay with the other pets downstairs.”

“No”, decided Leo with a grin and crawled into the bed on Frank's other side, the dog willingly making room for him. “He's a good boy and I think he's been through much. Deserves some comfort, isn't that right? And some cuddling, yes you do.”

The Bernese yelped in agreement, licking Leo's face and placing his paws on the boy. Luke rolled his eyes annoyed, stubbornly trying to stay on the bed even though the dog nearly pushed him off.

“Guard dog or not, you're mine now, Valdez”, hummed Luke determined. “Tavy told me all about his latest little conquest, so I have one free. And I didn't find a good fuck in the last three cities we've been to. You're going to be a 'good boy' and put out this time, Leo.”

Frank growled darkly, baring his teeth at the trickster and sprawling himself all over Leo possessively. The Latino grinned, wrapping his arms around the Bernese. He had a feeling that with Frank with him, Luke wouldn't even get the chance to molest him.

“I don't feel hungry, I'll just take a nap, Luke”, smiled Leo, rubbing his cheek against soft fur.

For once, Luke and Frank seemed to agree on something, because both growled annoyed. “Oh no, kiddo. You're coming down with me and you're going to eat. You got this whole neglect-thing going on again and that's not going to work on me. Bianca may allow you to skip a meal or two when you go all adorable kitten on her, but that shit won't work with me.”

The son of Hermes grabbed his hand and pulled him along, with Frank pushing Leo from behind. The Latino was pretty sure that if those two worked together, he stood no chance at all. Bianca and Alabaster were already setting the table and placing a fair share of pasta with pesto on six plates.

“Oh, you got him downstairs, good”, grinned Bianca with an approving nod. “Sit, boys.”

Leo ate, he wasn't feeling like it, but he ate. Not his whole plate, most of it went down to the begging dog beside him. Still, he ate more than in the past few days. He only listened with one ear to the conversations. The two parties exchanged stories on what they had been up to since they last met up. Everyone shared their opinion on the progress Nico and Jason seemed to be making on their search for the son of Poseidon and how the two were farther than them.

“They know what he looks like, they can find him”, hummed Bianca, proud of her baby brother.

“Where are they at the moment anyway?”, asked Ethan curiously, opening a beer for himself. “I mean, with the kid running off, where do they start now? And say, is it right they took a whole whore-house down and took the demigods with them?”

Alabaster nodded slowly before stealing his boyfriend's beer and taking a big gulp. “They sure did. The one whore they wanted got away though. Pity that. But I heard Luke's boyfriend got to bang him first, eh? Did our awesome augur give you any details, Luke?”

“Many”, hummed Luke, licking his lips and grabbing his own beer. “Sounds... intriguing.”

“Anyway”, interrupted Bianca with a sharp glare. “Nico called me this morning and told me they would make their way overseas tomorrow. They said the seas have been unusually calm, storms suddenly stopping yesterday. As if someone was soothing the Atlantic. Clarisse and Reyna think that the boy is trying to make his way as far away from here as possible.”

“Europe, eh?”, hummed Leo curiously. “I always wanted to see the world. I hope they take pictures and bring me something. I know, I know. This is not a vacation, but still...”

“No, you're right, Leo”, smiled Bianca, ruffling his hair. “I would like to go to Europe too once.”

“So... enough depressing stuff and work for today”, declared Thalia, hitting the table-top with her hands. “How about a game of strip-poker? Who's in for it?”

Grinning slightly at the daughter of Zeus, Leo stood. “I'm tired. You guys, have fun. See you in the morning. And try not turning this into an orgy, okay? I want to _sleep_.”

Thalia threw something – a cap of a bottle – after him as he bolted up the stairs, Frank at his heels. Once back in the isolated safety of the bedroom, he heaved a relieved sigh and shed his clothes down to his underwear. Only in his boxer-shorts, he crawled under the sheets on the bed's left side, where he had been laying before. It was slightly unsettling that he knew that Luke preferred the right side of the bed. Curling himself together as small as possible, he nearly jumped as the bed dipped. Turning around, he stared into the big, trusty brown eyes of Frank. The dog. Shaking his head, he tried to forget about Frank and Hazel, the humans. But those eyes, they really looked an awful lot like Frank's. Hence the new name for the Bernese. Frank whined and cuddled up to him. Yawning widely, Leo wrapped his arms around the fluffy dog and snuggled against the softness.

“Night, Frank...”, murmured the son of Hephaestus, closing his eyes.

 

/break\

 

That night, Leo had the best dream ever so far. He had dreamed that, in the middle of the night, he got woken up by a branch of the nearest tree scratching the window. But when he opened his eyes to stare out of the window where a storm was brewing, strong arms around his waist kept him close. As he looked up to scowl at Luke for molesting him in his sleep again, he was looking straight up at Frank. The Canadian had his muscular arms wrapped around Leo, his lips brushing past Leo's ear.

“Go back to sleep”, had Frank whispered in a sleepily raw voice. “I'll protect you.”

And even though there was a storm outside, he truly fell back asleep. Normally, he never slept during a storm, he was too afraid. It had been a stormy night when the lightning had hit his parents' house and set it on fire. Since then, he had come to hate storms, normally curling up in a corner during them. But that night, he slept better than normally.

“Urgh, get that bloody dog out of the bed, Valdez”, was what woke him up in the morning.

Opening one eye slowly, he lifted his head off the soft-furred back of the dog to look at the very annoyed son of Hermes. Grinning slightly, Leo snuggled back down to his new friend.

“Nope. Frank is staying with me”, murmured Leo, kissing Frank's head. “Right, buddy?”

The Bernese agreed with a grunt and returned to glare at Luke. It was fun, bugging the trickster like that. It wasn't that he disliked Luke, the other boy was in fact great. He had helped Leo around the city, had always stood up for him, even protected him once or twice from bullies. And the whole sexual advances thing wasn't all that serious either. Luke always stopped when Leo told him off, he never went too far. It was more like a game than serious molestation, Leo supposed.

“I hate that beast”, muttered Luke, running his fingers through his hair. “I barely slept at all. Think that thing kicked me the whole night. Damn monster.”

Leo smiled softly, climbing over Frank to sit between the dog and the demigod. Leaning down, he placed a chaste kiss on Luke's cheek, which earned him a dark, displeased growl from Frank and a very approving grunt from Luke. The son of Hermes wrapped his arms around the boy.

“Let him stay, please?”, asked the Latino, tilting his head. “I don't think he has a place to stay. I promise I'll watch him and take care of him. He won't be a bother or anything. Please?”

“Come here, maybe I'll allow it then”, smirked the trickster, pulling Leo close.

The son of Hephaestus sighed and came to rest on Luke's chest, allowing the trickster to cuddle him for now. It always made Luke more obedient. Leo somehow understood. Whenever they met up, the trickster had to watch those two happy couples, all cuddling and kissing and making out and just being happy together, while his own lover was miles and states away. He missed it, missed him.

“Have you talked to Octavian lately?”, asked the Latino softly.

“Five days ago”, sighed Luke with a glare. “Maybe five minutes or so before Malcolm took over to tell us some shit. Tavy told me how the son of Poseidon had felt around him, how good it was to have that level of intimacy again. Said he'd like to share that hole with me one day.”

“I really don't get your relationship”, frowned the confused son of Hephaestus. “I mean... aren't you jealous when you hear that your boyfriend had sex with someone else? Doesn't it anger you?”

“We've been gone for months now”, whispered Luke and turned to stare out of the window. “Tavy is the augur, one of the highest ranked citizens we have. He's handsome and he has that whole British gentleman charm going on. Either I allow him to fuck whoever he wants to fuck, or he'll most likely get bored, break up and look for someone else.”

“Do you... really think that...?”, murmured Leo with a tilted head.

“Does it matter?”, shrugged the son of Hermes, not looking at the Latino. “What about you?”

“Mh?”, grunted the Latino, running his fingers through Frank's fur (who was still glaring at Luke as though he wanted to rip him apart and have him for dessert). “What about me?”

“I heard Alabaster earlier”, said Luke with one raised eyebrow. “Who is Frank? Not the mutt.”

“Frank is... I don't know...”, sighed Leo frustrated, hiding his face in Luke's chest. “I met him and his girlfriend, Hazel, weeks ago in Seattle. I... I don't know. I only spend a couple of hours with them, but I can't get them out of my head. I just...”

“Tell me about them”, prompted the son of Hermes, caressing Leo's curls.

“He is that... bulky, growly Alpha male”, grinned Leo sheepishly, blushing slightly. “All tall and strong. Faintly Asian from his heritage, I'd guess. With those dark, boring eyes. And she... is a real chocolatey beauty, with caramel curls and really kind golden eyes. And her legs, they are so long and she has all those curves where they should be. She looks like a model. They could be right out of some advertisement or a porn or something.”

“Little Leo is having a crush”, teased Luke amused. “Two crushes, even. That's too cute. And that was the first time I heard you say the word 'porn'. Don't tell me you're having dirty thoughts.”

“Well... I mean... uh... I'm only sixteen, okay? I think such stuff too!”, yelped Leo and blushed.

“I'm on a dry-spell. How about you inspire me and tell me more?”, smirked Luke, teasingly resting his hands on Leo's tight, little ass. “What do you dream they're doing to you?”

“I can't tell you”, frowned Leo and blushed. “It's too embarrassing!”

“Then you _really_ have to tell me”, demanded Luke, Frank agreeing with a loud bark.


	9. Stalking a Firebug

8\. Stalking a Firebug

 

“Are you sure you're going to be alright?”, murmured Frank worried.

They were just packing up their stuff from the latest hide-out they were using. Hazel rolled her eyes at him amused and put the shirt aside to walk over to him and kiss him softly. Grunting slightly, Frank wrapped his arms around her waist and lifted her up onto the dresser. Grinning into the kiss, she wrapped her legs around his waist and her arms around his neck.

“Yes”, grinned Hazel amused. “I'm sure I'm going to be alright. I won't be alone, after all. I got Arion with me. We'll pull through. But I have to go and check on this.”

“I know”, huffed the Canadian with a slight pout, burying his face in her wild locks. “I just... I don't like to be apart from you. We've never been apart since we got together, Haze. I've always been there to watch out for you. I know you can watch out for yourself, but I'm worried, okay?”

“Being worried is the reason why we part ways”, smiled Hazel softly, running her fingers along his neck. “Because I can watch out for myself, but our little firebug can't. So you need to stay close and keep an eye on him while I will leave to check this mess out.”

Frank grunted and nodded slowly. They had to prioritize. A couple of days word had reached them that a bordello where many demigods had been working had been taken down by that awful organization. Neither Frank nor Hazel had any idea what those creeps were doing with demigods, but they were collecting them like stamps or something. It freaked both of them out, especially because they knew these guys were looking for Hazel.

First meeting Leo had been different. The boy was adorable. But learning that the boy belonged to The Search had chased them off. For days, they had tried to steer clear from Leo and his companions. But somehow that little imp had wormed his way into their hearts, so they had started stalking him, a little bit. The more they had observed them, the more they got the impression that Leo had no idea what he was involved in there. He was mainly following the orders of the child of death and got pushed around by the child of witchcraft. Even though those weren't in bad spirit, more in a sibling-like way. It confused Frank and Hazel even more.

By now, they had the theory that The Search was chasing demigods down, catching them and then somehow brainwashing them or manipulating them into doing whatever the heck it was they were doing. All they really knew was that they needed to stay away from them.

And by 'they', they meant themselves _and Leo_. Because The Search was, and they were very sure of that, bad. After all, why should the good guys hunt demigods down? Hazel and Frank had encountered many demigods on the run and once The Search met them, those demigods just disappeared from the streets to never be seen again.

Whatever it was they were doing to demigods, Frank and Hazel would not allow for that to happen to Leo. Who knew? Maybe The Search was using demigods to track down other demigods and once they fulfilled that purpose, they just got rid of them? That was not going to happen to Leo.

Stalking the Latino had made them kind of obsessed with Leo. Crazy thing to say, because to stalk someone there had to be a certain level of obsession to begin with. It was just that the boy was too cute to be true. The tender way he was taking care of his metal dragon in such a motherly way. The soft voice he used when he was talking to his big brother on the phone (not that they heard very much of the conversations, they were mostly only watching, unable to listen in). The way his lithe body swayed when he sang in the shower (that may have been one of the more obsessive ways of stalking the little imp). One thing was clear to the couple: Leo was innocent. And that innocence needed to be protected. Even though Frank and Hazel had no idea how they would do it, but they knew they would get Leo away from The Search and keep him to themselves.

To do so, they first needed to make sure that the little imp was safe. But with the strange on-goings of the Purple Oyster, they needed to check that out too. See if the son of Neptune was alright. They had encountered him a couple of months ago. Truth be told, they had fucked the pretty boy and used him to get some information. But as it turned out, the boy had no idea about his own heritage. It was why they had left the Purple Oyster soon after. Without knowing about his own origins, he would for now stay safe from The Search. This raid however made them suspicious and kind of upset.

An investigation was called for. Normally, that wouldn't be a problem. Hazel and Frank would just pack their stuff up and go and look into it. Now, they had a responsibility to watch after.

So they had decided to split up. Leo and his companions meeting up with that other trio was dangerous. More demigods meant a bigger threat for their little imp. Frank's ability to shift was rare, they had never heard of someone like him before. It was most likely that The Search had no idea someone had this ability either. The solution was easy; Frank would shift to stay as close to Leo as possible, something he hadn't dared before because he didn't like to leave Hazel out like that. But while his girlfriend was gone anyway, this was the perfect opportunity for Frank to be close to their little imp. Not that Frank was happy to be apart from Hazel, he was just trying to see things positive. At least he got to spend closer time with the little imp.

“Have you thought about a fitting form yet?”, asked Hazel as she went back to packing.

“I don't know”, frowned Frank thoughtful. “I mean, he obviously loves dragons, so that would impress him the most. But it would be suspicious. Cats aren't... I'm not a cat-person.”

“Right”, snickered Hazel teasingly. “That's why it completely did not arouse you when the witch boy added a set of cat ears and a fluffy cat tail to our little firebug a week ago, right?”

Frank glared and stuck his tongue out at her. Firebug. It was what Hazel liked to call him ever since they had discovered their little imp's gift. Probably the reason why The Search was putting up with someone like him, someone who wasn't a big fighter. Leo could control fire. If he would learn to properly control that gift, he could in fact be dangerous. Maybe that was what The Search was waiting for? What if they realized that Leo wasn't a fighter at all? That he wasn't of any use to them? That was the reason Frank had to go and keep an eye on Leo, to make sure he was safe.

“I love you”, whispered Hazel as she once again wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him into a soft kiss. “I love you so much. Watch out for yourself and our firebug, okay?”

“I will”, nodded Frank slowly, determined. “I promise. I can't wait to see you again, love.”

“Neither can I”, grinned the daughter of Pluto softly, kissing his nose.

 

/break\

 

That had been the last time he had talked to Hazel in two days now. Since he knew her, this was the longest period of time that they hadn't seen each other or talked with each other. After she had left, he had made his way to the mountains of Canada where he knew their firebug would be meeting this other group of Searchers. Once in the snowy mountains, he soon decided on a form. A Bernese was a strong dog with much, warm fur. And they were cute, something Leo seemed to like.

Luckily for him, this other trio had already been there. The daughter of lightning, the son of traveling and the son of balance. The female had let him in, saying something about her girlfriend liking animals. He made a point of growling at them and keeping them on a distance. Instead, he rather stuck with the two animals – Mrs. O'Leary and Balance. A very friendly female hell-hound and an aristocratic pegasus stallion. The daughter of lightning had tried to pet him once. She had regretted it. The son of traveling had dared to speak of Frank's firebug once. He had regretted it.

Frank frowned upset as he glared at the one called Luke. That guy didn't sit right with him, not the least bit. Before Leo and his companions had arrived, the guy had dared to talk about Leo's ass and how much he wanted to tap that ass. Nothing Frank would allow, that much was sure.

The day had gotten way better when the Latino and his companions had arrived. Especially when the first thing Leo did had been to cuddle up to Mrs. O'Leary and pay attention to Frank. In the past hours with Mrs. O'Leary and Balance, Frank had learned that Leo was very well loved by the animals and that Mrs. O'Leary viewed him as a cub and protected him (he had never before gotten the Protective Mom Speech from a giant dog, that was new).

Within the first hours after Leo's arrival, Frank was already very glad that he had decided to keep an eye on Leo. Not only because of the shared shower with the Latino, really not! Mostly so because Frank was very sure that Castellan would have sweet-talked and molested his way into Leo's pants by now. That bloody trickster had tried to snuggle up to Leo more than once during the night. He had also gotten bitten more than once during that night.

Once during the night, Leo had woken up due to the storm outside. It had been a moment when Frank had decided to shift into his human form, because he wanted to feel Leo close in his arms.

Now it was morning and Frank was laying sprawled all over the only boxer-shorts wearing Latino, cuddled up to the lithe boy's chest, his snout on Leo's neck to sniff him better and enjoy his scent. It was a good spot, he felt Leo's warmth, smelt Leo's scent, heard Leo's heartbeat and his voice. The only thing missing was Hazel. The daughter of Pluto would have so much fun with the fact that Leo had actually named him Frank, she would never stop laughing over it.

“Who's a good boy?”, whispered Leo into his ear, ruffling the fur on Frank's head.

Frank grunted slightly annoyed and rolled his eyes. That little firebug would get payback for this, that much was for sure. And then they would see who was a 'good boy'. Huffing at that thought, Frank licked once square over Leo's face, making the boy yelp and giggle.

“Get that disgusting beast out of the bed”, ordered Luke irritated and glared.

Frank returned that glare just as fiercely and made his stance clear, his legs on either side of the Latino possessively. Leo grinned up at him and had his arms wrapped around the broad dog.

“Lu—uke”, whined Leo with that adorable pout of his. “Please? He's a good boy. Let me have him. I told you, I'd take care of him. I hate when you're all mopey because you didn't get laid.”

“You could change that”, smirked the son of Hermes, cupping Leo's cheek.

At least until Frank had his teeth in that hand. Luke hissed and pulled his hand back, returning to glare at the dog. Frank was smug as Leo pulled him closer to protect him from Luke.

“I told you Frank doesn't like it when you molest me”, grinned Leo and stuck his tongue out. “Now please be nice to me, okay? I know it sucks that you can't be with Octavian, but at least you _have_ a boyfriend. I don't have anyone... Please let me at least have him?”

“Urgh, I hate you, Valdez”, grunted Luke displeased. “How the fuck am I supposed to say no to that face when you pull the lonely, poor little thing card? You're such a cheeky bitch.”

“And you _love_ that”, grinned Leo and pecked Luke's cheek. “So you're not throwing him out?”

“I don't think I'd life through the punishment Bianca and Thalia would sentence me with for upsetting you”, muttered the son of Hermes under his breath. “Yeah, fine. Keep the dog. But your reasoning is really concerning. You argue that you want to keep him because you don't have a boyfriend? By all means, at least let me watch how you turn into a _real_ bitch.”

“You're such an sick bastard”, hissed Leo and blushed, burying his face in Frank's fur.

The son of Mars whined and curled together around his firebug in a protective manner. The damn son of Hermes had already done enough of a number on Frank when he had started bugging Leo about the Latino's fantasies. Not that Leo had answered yet. That was probably the only thing where Frank hoped for Luke to be more persistent. For now, cuddling with the comfortable Latino was quite acceptable too though. There were scars on his firebug's body that he had noticed and of which he disapproved. If he found out where they came from, he would make some bastard pay.

“You think we should go downstairs for breakfast?”, murmured Luke softly.

“No”, replied Leo with a slight shake of his head, cuddling up to Luke and keeping Frank close. “They're all busy fucking anyway. I want to enjoy that I can actually stay in bed and don't have to get up and repair something or have to go and chase ghosts... I just want to stay here...”

“Fine with me”, grinned Luke and wrapped one arm around Leo's shoulders.

Frank glared, but this time he refrained from barking. Because there was a tenderness in Luke's eyes, a notion that didn't speak of perverseness but rather a brotherly fondness. That, Frank could accept. He had seen it in the witch boy's eyes and in the shadow girl's too. And he appreciated that those others cared for his firebug, it made the paranoia go away a little about how The Search was holding Leo captive. Which only made Frank worry more about their motives.

“The... son of Poseidon...”, started Leo softly, nearly reluctantly. “I've never quite caught what they got on him... Can you inform me a little? Would be kind of embarrassing if I'd walk past him, eh?”

“Work”, groaned Luke annoyed. “I get to cuddle with you and you want to talk about _work_.”

“Woe is you”, laughed Leo, poking Luke's cheek. “Come on. Your boyfriend fucked the son of Poseidon. Aside from being really embarrassed, what did he tell you?”

“It wasn't a coincident”, snorted the son of Hermes and rolled his eyes. “The Oracle of Delphi made the augur a birthday present in the form of a night with the son of Poseidon. What about that sounds like a coincident? She may deny it with those sparkling eyes of hers, but I doubt her.”

“So?”, grinned Leo amused, folding his arms under his chin on Luke's chest.

“The name is Perseus Ugliano, fair skinned, deep and green eyes, pitch-black hair, about a head or so smaller than me and Tavy, or so he said...”, drawled Luke on, a little bored. “Long, sweet legs. And the nicest round ass Tavy had ever had. Not that Tavy gets much ass...”

Luke was too busy snickering to notice the flash of shock on Leo's face. But it didn't go past Frank. The shapeshifter glared curiously as his firebug turned around, to face the window instead of his friend, so Luke won't see that shocked and panicked expression on his face. Whining softly, Frank licked Leo's face soothingly, which made even Luke stop in his talk.

“Leo? Everything alright, cutey?”, asked the son of Hermes concerned.

“I... I... my stomach hurts...”, murmured Leo, wrapping his arms around his midsection and curling together in himself. “I'd like to... sleep some more... Would you mind...?”

“Sure...?”, nodded Luke slowly and stood. “I'll tell the others to tune it done some. We'll have some soup for lunch then, mh? The last thing we need is for you to be sick. Rest until it's better, Leo.”

He placed a soft kiss on top of Leo's head before leaving. Frank was a little stunned at how sensitive the brat could be after all, but that surprise was a short-lived one, because Leo demanded his attention back. The Latino wrapped his arms tightly around the big dog and pulled him close.

“Frank...”, whispered Leo softly, his eyes tightly closed. “What... What am I supposed to do...?”

All Frank wanted to do was ask his boy what was wrong and comfort him, assure him that Frank would be there and help him through this. But he couldn't do this without blowing his cover and at this point in time, that was a stupid thing to do. So all he really could do was whine and push his nose against Leo's neck, tickling the boy softly, emitting a low sob from Leo.

“I _know_ Percy”, whispered Leo barely audible against Frank's fur. “H—He is my brother...” Frank stiffened and frowned confused. Wasn't Leo a son of Hephaestus? And this boy they were chasing, he was a son of Poseidon...? “W—When I was in foster care, before I met the others... I was... I lived with Percy and his mom for a while. Percy was my foster brother... one of the few that ever really cared for me... He and his mom made me feel like being in a real family for the first time since my mom had died... But... when... when Percy's mom... died... I—I got send away... He was my brother, he _is_ my brother... He protected me before I met Bibi and the others, he always accepted me, he didn't need to know that I'm a demigod to pay attention to me, he always loved me... I don't want him to be dragged into all of this, he deserves a normal life... H—He deserves...”

Leo cried himself to sleep, drenching Frank's fur with his tears. The son of Mars too was upset. He had no idea how he could help his firebug, but he now knew they had to find that son of Poseidon, because The Search was looking for him and because he was important to Leo.


	10. The Ocean and the Thames Part I

9\. The Ocean and the Thames Part I

 

Piper smiled softly as she had her fingers linked with Annabeth, the two girls walking behind a happily glowing Percy. Never before had the native American seen Percy like that. His smile was radiant as he clung to the blue box in his arms like it was a treasure.

“Are you going to carry that thing around in your arms all day now?”, grunted Piper unimpressed.

“It's not a thing!”, defended Percy appalled. “It's a TARDIS! You can't call a TARDIS a thing!”

“You're a nerd”, snorted the native American and rolled her eyes. “I don't get this. That we're here, in London, just because you like that stupid show with that telephone box traveling alien.”

“Police call box”, corrected Percy in a muttered, pouty voice. “And shut up, okay?”

“No”, smirked Piper teasingly, catching up to Percy to poke his nose. “You have to explain to me what is so great about this show. Because I really don't get it. I mean, theoretically I get why you like it. Everybody likes something. But your level of obsession...”

Percy slowed down some, his eyes downcast. “When I was a little boy... My mom, she used to watch the reruns of the old show with me. Every Saturday when Gabe would go gambling with his buddies, we'd get to sit together and watch it. It was that one hour we had to each other when the world would look beautiful and good. Imagining there was a Doctor out there, ready to fix everything. And when Leo came to us... The new series aired. Mom was so excited. And Leo was so confused. He had been very closed off when we first took him in, but when we started having those family nights and watching the new series together, he started to open up to us... A—At least until my mom died and Gabe... gave Leo away... _Doctor Who_ is all I have left of my family...”

“Oh, come on”, groaned Piper, bumping shoulders with Percy. “How am I supposed to make fun of your nerdiness now? That was like the saddest thing I've ever heard!”

“If the two of you are done bickering, can we get going? Those apples don't get lighter.”

Piper blushed and hurried back to Annabeth to take the bag of apples from her. The blonde gave her a grateful smile for that. The three of them went back to their hotel in the heart of London. Percy grinned broadly as he ran up to their room and unlocked the door to enter. It was a bit pompous, but they had only been living there for a couple of days now, so it was okay, it was home, somehow. Putting the toy TARDIS onto the table, Percy took an apple out of one of the girls' bags and skipped over to the balcony, where the black pegasus stallion was already eagerly awaiting his treat. Blackjack had proven to be useful company. He had brought them to Miami, where it hadn't been hard for Piper to persuade a guy into bringing them to Europe with his yacht. She was really good with words, Percy always admired that. And now they were in London. Easy as that. They've had enough money to get a beautiful hotel room too. And they got Blackjack fresh apples every day.

“ _Boss! You brought apples!_ ”, whined the stallion happily, rubbing his head against Percy's.

“That was the deal”, grinned Percy amused, caressing the black mane. “You bring us places, we bring you apples. What have you been doing all day, Blacky?”

“ _Nothing much... There are some nice mares around! And handsome stallions!_ ”, replied Blackjack.

“Naughty boy”, chuckled Percy and shook his head. “Did someone pick your interest?”

“ _Naw. But it was nice talking to other pegasi and horses again aside from always only talking to you. Not that you're not awesome company, boss, but..._ ”, declined Blacky with a head-shake.

“I get it, you were lonely in the garage. I'm sorry. I just tried to help”, frowned Percy upset.

“ _You did help!_ ”, reassured Blackjack softly, bumping heads with Percy. “ _You saved me. You're my friend. I just miss having others of my kind around too..._ ”

“Then go and have some more fun with your new friends”, grinned Percy amused and turned.

Patting the stallion for a last time, Percy went back inside, where Piper and Annabeth had already set the table with the things they had bought on their trip to the city. So far they had seen eight different musicals, gone shopping, bought fanboy stuff for Percy and done everything a tourist in London had to do. It was a vacation. Not an adventure. But for now, it was nice too, so Percy didn't say anything. He too wanted to enjoy their new-won freedom before they would have real adventures. Humming softly, Percy sat down next to Piper, folding his legs beneath his body.

“You know, London is pretty great”, grinned the native American. “But... are we staying?”

“No”, replied Percy and shook his head. “I want to see more. I just thought a couple of calm days would be nice. Maybe a few more days to figure out what we want?”

He took one of the three bowls, the one with pineapples and honey, and dove into his lunch. Stupid things like that was what he enjoyed most. Just eating what they wanted whenever they wanted instead of the little and healthy stuff Gabe allowed them to have. Annabeth was eating rice pudding with cherries and Piper was dipping her croissant right into the jar of Nutella.

“Sounds like a plan to me”, shrugged Annabeth, sticking her finger into Piper's Nutella to lick it off.

“You're a pig, Chase”, grunted the native American annoyed yet still flustered as the watched how Annabeth licked the chocolate cream off again. “You are so paying for my pizza.”

Smiling softly to himself, Percy watched his friends. It was nice, just sitting together, having them with him. He felt content and happy. Sure, he wondered how their other friends back at the Purple Oyster were doing, but knowing them, they were probably fine.

“I think I'll take a nap... We've been walking so much this morning... I'm dead on my feet...”

“Really?”, frowned Annabeth upset. “I thought we were going to that restaurant for pizza...”

“Yeah. I mean, this is like an appetizer. I need something real after this”, huffed Piper and motioned to her jar of chocolate dip. “We've spend all morning on that fanboy mission of yours, you can't just deny us that promised pizza, Jackson.”

“You two could go alone?”, suggested Percy and yawned. “I'm really tired. Go and have fun alone. I'm not very hungry anyway. Or you could bring something back so we'd also have dinner?”

“Of course you're not very hungry. You ate nearly the whole buffet on your own this morning”, noted his blonde friend with one arched eyebrow. “But okay. If you're sure about it?”

“Sure I am”, nodded Percy between the pineapple pieces. “Go on a date, have fun just the two of you. It must annoy you to always have me around without any privacy.” At their shocked and flustered expressions, he raised both his eyebrows. “Really? I'm not blind. The sexual tension between the two of you could be cut with a knife. I've always wondered who it is that Piper loves, but now that it's just the three of us around, I noticed all those little glances and shit.”

“W—What glances?”, blinked the brightly pink Annabeth doe-eyed.

“Uh... well... I... like you? Very much?”, mumbled Piper and averted her eyes.

“Oh. You two never discussed that? My bad, sorry”, grinned Percy sheepishly.

“Shut up!”, huffed Piper and threw a pillow at the boy.

“So... Does that mean you're asking me out on a date?”, asked Annabeth softly.

“Uh, well, I guess? I—If you want to, that is, of course”, stuttered Piper and heaved a sigh. “Damn. I'm so good at making others agree to whatever I want, why is this so hard with you...?”

“Because you love her”, offered Percy with a shrug.

“Go jump off a bridge”, hissed Piper and blushed. “You're not helping!”

Giggling at his flustered friends, Percy stood to get into his room. They had a suit with two bedrooms. He had assumed that this was the case so Annabeth and Piper could at least cuddle, while they didn't get to have sex what with Percy sleeping in the other room. That seemed to not be the case though. Shrugging slightly to himself, Percy closed the door behind himself and fell face first onto the big bed. His eyes closed serenely as he fell into a light slumber.

 

/break\

 

His dreams always were different. Sometimes he was just sad and dreaming of a life where his mom was still alive and Leo was still around and they were just a happy family. Those dreams, he understood. Sometimes he had wet dreams of either his favorite costumers or some stars from telly. Those dreams, he really understood. But then there were the dreams he didn't understand. When he saw people he had never seen before, just watching them do regular stuff, talking or sitting together or walking or hiking. As though he was watching someone else's life. The last few days however, his dreams had become somewhat of a mix between watching and wet dreams. Really messed up. He kept dreaming of the handsome blonde and his Italian boyfriend. Mostly about them making out or fucking. And he was just hovering somewhere, watching them.

“Oh... nice...”, grinned Percy to himself as he stared out of the window.

The Eiffel tower. Paris. It was beautiful. Turning around, he noticed that it must have been a hotel too. The pleased grin widened some as he saw what was waiting in the bed. The handsome blonde was laying sprawled all over the bed, with the hot Italian laying on his chest. Nice setting. It had become his second favorite dream, the ones about the Italian and the blonde. Nothing could beat the memory of Sally and Leo though, not even two hot guys going at it.

“Why are we here, Jay?”, yawned the Italian, drawing signs onto the blonde's chest.

“What do you mean?”, huffed his boyfriend with a frown, running his fingers through dark curls.

He remembered their names – Jason and Nico. But calling them by their names was like getting attached and those weird dreams were already strange enough as it was. Hiding a little behind the curtain, Percy kept watching. They couldn't see him anyway, but it made him feel safer.

“This is our hotel room, we just fucked here”, grunted Nico and sat up, swatting Jason's hand away. “Why are we here now? In our dreams? Can't we go somewhere fancy, or at least be at home?”

“What's it matter?”, huffed Jason and rolled his eyes. “We're going to fuck anyway. Does it matter where we do it? Can't we just do it? You know, you said I owe you one, so why don't you collect?”

“Okay, okay, okay. You win. We can't have as much amazing sex as we want to with the others next door”, sighed Nico in defeat and sat up some. “So yay for shared dreams. Still, next time I request a change of scenery. Bring me somewhere nice or fancy, Barbie boy. Now turn around.”

“Oh, it's blondie's turn tonight, nice”, chimed Percy silently to himself.

“Who's there?”, growled Jason right away, his eyes darkening dangerously.

He gripped Nico's shoulder, but the Italian was as set on protecting him as he was on protecting Nico, so that looked more like a very weird fight for dominance. Many things between them looked that way, as Percy had already witnessed. Grinning amused, he stepped closer to observe them. But as he stepped out from behind the curtain, the two boys on the bed froze.

“I—It's _you_ ”, stuttered Nico stunned and stared directly at Percy.

Freezing up in mid-step, Percy returned the stare. “You can see me? Finally! These wet dreams are going to be _so_ much more fun if I don't have to just stand by and watch anymore!”

“We're looking everywhere for you...”, blinked Nico slowly and stood to walk over to Percy.

Once he was in front of Percy, he put a hand on the other boy's cheek, the other on his waist. The smile Nico gave him was contagious, it made Percy feel all warm and fuzzy inside, so he obliged as he got pulled into a tight hug by the Italian. Jason frowned at them thoughtful.

“It must be because he's a son of Poseidon. Children of the Big Three, we're stronger. It must be why he can join our shared dreams. That and because he must spend an awful lot of time thinking of us”, mused the blonde curiously. “But Perseus, tell me what you meant when you said wet dream?”

“First of all, do not under any circumstances call me that ever again”, huffed Percy as he pushed Nico off some. “It's Percy, okay? Per-cy. Not Per-seus. And what else aside from a wet dream can that be? I keep dreaming of you guys fucking and making out. But blimey, you've never seen me before. It started to drive me nuts. What good is a wet dream if you're only like a voyeur?!”

“Huh?”, blinked Nico confused, looking from Percy to Jason and back again.

That thoughtful look on Jason's face intensified. “It happens when we're not in sync with our sleep. Sometimes, I get to just stand in a corner and watch you until you fall asleep too, Nico.”

“Oh... So, this is like the first time that all three of us are asleep at the same time”, mused Nico.

“Why are you two still talking and what is it you're babbling about? Can we please fuck?”

“No, Perse... Percy, this is not just a dream. Your mind didn't just make me and Nico up, we're really here”, said Jason softly. “This is a shared dream. Your mind is here, just like mine and Nico's. What happens in a shared dream feels real too. You're not just dreaming it up, Percy.”

“That is real bullshit”, chuckled Percy amused and grabbed Nico's hand to pull him over to the bed. “But then again, most the stuff you two say sounds like you escaped from a mental institution. Which is kind of a pity, because I was so sure you're some kind of spies. Now let's fuck.”

Once on the bed, Percy already had Nico's hands placed on on his very nice ass, the Italian licking his lips as he squeezed what he had been chasing for weeks now. Jason glared at them.

“Stop talking about sex!”, exclaimed Jason annoyed, pushing Nico away from Percy and seating them on either side of him. “And stop touching him, di Angelo. Try _focusing_. That's our chance.”

“Right. Focusing. Mission”, nodded Nico embarrassed, staring longingly at Percy.

“Missionary position?”, supplied Percy with an innocent grin, licking his lips.

“Yes”, nodded Nico eagerly until Jason hit him upside the head, making him shake it. “I mean, no.”

“Percy”, started Jason softly, pushing his horny boyfriend behind himself so he could focus on Percy fully. “We've been to the Purple Oyster before, on a mission. We are spies, in a way. And our mission was to find you, to safe you.”

“Safe me? Are you spies or knights in shining armor?”, snorted Percy unimpressed.

He sat crossed-legged and glared with a pout. Why was he getting a preach in his sex dream? This sucked! First time for them to actually see him and now they were talking instead of fucking.

“We're demigods, Percy”, explained Nico as he pushed past his boyfriend. “Children of the Greek and Roman gods. They are real, Percy. My father is Hades, ruler over the underworld. And Jason's father is Jupiter, the king of Olympus. Your father is Poseidon.”

“Greek and Roman gods? Like from Disney? So your dad is the dude with the blue flame hair? Be glad you didn't inherit those”, laughed Percy ridiculed and shook his head. “And you must have a real hard time living up to the expectations others have on you since Hercules, huh?”

“It's not like Disney. It's like the real myths”, grunted Jason annoyed. “Look, I know this is overwhelming. But just... think about it. Think of everything weird that had happened to you in your life. I mean really weird things like mythological creatures or monsters.”

“Like... winged horses...?”, asked Percy slowly, cautiously, backing off some.

“Pegasi, yeah”, nodded Nico hastily, glad that Percy caught on. “Your dad, he's the god of the sea. You have a connection to water. But he's also the creator of horses, which makes you-”

“Their boss?”, frowned Percy confused. “Because that's what he's calling me.”

“Who's calling you that?”, asked Jason slowly. “Who have you been talking to?”

“Jealous?”, teased Percy and poked the blonde's nose. “My friend. I call him Blackjack. He's a winged horse. He always calls me boss. Is that because I'm the son of his creator?”

“He talks to horses”, blinked Nico stunned. “That is new. Cool, but new.”

“Okay, so... let me assume for a second that what you're saying is not the weird lunch messing with me, but that it's true. The shared dreams, us being god-kids, all that stuff”, started Percy slowly, lifting his arms up in surrender. “Then tell me one thing. Why have you been looking for me?”

“Because you're a child of one of the Big Three. Hades, Zeus, Poseidon. Or Pluto, Jupiter, Neptune, if you're Roman”, tried Nico to explain. “They're the most powerful gods. And they scarcely sire children. But if they do, those demigods are especially powerful. And someone is after this power. We've been looking for you, because we want to keep you safe, to look out for you.”

“Who tells me that you're not the someones after this power?”, frowned Percy skeptical. “Who's to tell me that you're not the bad guys in disguise? Who is after me?”

“That would be too much”, sighed Jason, rubbing his temples. “You're not even believing this, why should you believe us when we tell you that the ancient siblings – Hemera and Nyx – are fighting and trying to get us on either of their sides.”

“You got a point there”, nodded Percy with a grin and laid down on the bed, with his arms behind his head. “You two are really cute. But totally weird. This is such a waste of a perfectly good bed and a perfectly good dream. I didn't want fairy tales, I wanted sex...”

“You're really horny”, teased Nico as he sneaked past Jason to lay next to Percy.

“I just never had sex with someone solemnly out of the reason that I wanted it”, shrugged Percy. “Jesus, not even in my dreams do I get to have sex with who I want. This sucks.”

“Percy”, sighed Jason, climbing over his boyfriend so he could lay on Percy's other side. “You're in danger. Even if you don't believe a word we're saying, at least tell us where you are at the moment. Physically. Where have you gone after leaving the US? Please. Europe is big and we keep looking. We've been searching for you for months now.”

Percy stared at the blonde confused. There was a longing, a haunted and dark shadow in his eyes. As though he truly had spend a long period of time away from home and returning home was all he truly wanted. It wasn't just that though, there was this need in them too. A need to protect. Him. Even if this was a dream, even if this was all a whole load of bull, this still looked so real. And it made Percy's heart flutter. Those two, they really wanted to protect him.

“This is stupid, because you won't come anyway, because this is just a dream”, grinned Percy, shaking his head slowly. “But okay. Maybe I'll get a real fuck out of this. I'm-”

 

/break\

 

“-in London”, gasped Percy out as he sat up straight in his bed. “Ouch.”

“Sorry”, muttered Piper sitting opposite him. “You just wouldn't wake up. But you had to.”

“Why?”, frowned Percy upset, rubbing his cheek. “I was so short of getting laid. I'm sure if I had told them I'm in London, they would have shagged me! Maybe even both at the same time...”

“Little perv”, chuckled Piper, hitting him upside the head. “I asked Annie out on a date and she really agreed. But I've been trying to pick clothes for half an hour now. And I can't decide what's best. You know I'm shit at that. Since this is all your fault, you will be helping me pick something.”

“You can be such a pain in the ass”, groaned the green-eyed boy and rubbed his face. “I'm tired. I wanted to sleep. I had a nice dream. And you wake me up so you can get laid? That's mean.”

“Whatever. Who said I'm the nice one out of us?”, grinned Piper broadly and jumped up. “Annie left to check a bookstore. But we're soon due to meet at the restaurant and I still don't know what to wear. Pick something pretty out for me. But not too pretty. And not too girly. But I also don't want to look too tomboyish. Or crappy because of my fashion sense. I don't want her to be ashamed to be seen with me, you know?”

“I think I've never seen you nervous before”, muttered her friend and stretched some. “That's weird. Please stop being weird, Pipes. That's not you. You're not girly like that.”

“I know”, sighed the native American and hung her head low. “It's her. She's driving me crazy. I just want to be perfect for Annabeth, but I fear I'll mess up. She's just so clever and...”

“Urgh, spare me, please”, smiled Percy teasingly, leaving his room to get to the girls' room.

“Oh. Right. Before I woke you, your phone has been buzzing. Caller ID said Leo...”

Piper threw the phone at Percy, the boy caught it just as they came to stand in front of Piper's closet. Frowning at the phone, he stuffed it into his pocket and turned to Piper with a smile.

“I'll call him back later. Now let me take care of your little problem, Beauty Queen.”

“Thank you, you're the best!”, yelped Piper relieved and hugged him.


	11. The Ocean and the Thames Part II

10\. The Ocean and the Thames Part II

 

After what felt like eternity, Piper had finally agreed to the outfit Percy had picked for her and by now she should already be meeting with Annabeth. But by now, Percy was too wide-awake to fall asleep again. Mostly so because he tried too damn hard to fall asleep again and if trying too hard, it was simply impossible to find sleep again. Sighing annoyed, he threw his pillow against the wall and turned around to glare at the nightstand next to his bed. His cellphone stared back at him. Hadn't Piper said something about a missed call? Grabbing the phone, he dialed Leo's number.

“Hey, my little lion cub. What's up?”, asked Percy softly as the Latino picked up.

“Percy? Oh gods, you're alright. I'm so glad you're alright”, gasped Leo obviously very relieved.

“Why... shouldn't I?”, frowned Percy confused. “What's wrong, Leo?”

“T—There are... things happening and we need to talk about them”, whispered Leo softly, yet urgently. “Percy. There is something very important about your father that you need to know.”

“If you're going to tell me that he's Poseidon, then I'll just go and check in in the next mental institute”, huffed Percy and rolled his eyes. “You're the third person telling me that today. Well, if weird dreams count any, then again, I think I'm losing it anyway.”

“A dream? You need to be cautious with dreams! Demigod dreams always mean something!”, rushed the Latino out, stumbling over his words. “Oh gods, there are so many things I need to tell you, I don't even know where to start... Percy. Where are you?”

“I'm in London, with Annie and Pipes”, grinned Percy with a slow shrug. “Why?”

“I'm on my way. I... uh... Tomorrow. I'll be there tomorrow, I promise. Please don't tell anyone about it, don't talk to anyone. They could be monsters in disguise. Monsters are good at that kind of stuff and they love eating demigods and I don't want you eaten, please!”

“Leo. Calm down”, frowned Percy, by now worried for his little brother. “I promise, okay?”

“No. Swear it. Swear you're not going to talk to _anyone_ about any of this. Stay where you are and wait for me, okay? I'll find you and I promise I'll explain everything to you.”

“You'll come here?”, smiled Percy, happy at that. “I haven't seen you in so long. Okay. I promise, I swear, anything. Anything to get to see you again. I love you, little lion cub. Just calm down, yeah?”

“Y—Yeah. I'll calm down. Maybe. I'll call you again once I reach London. Don't tell any stranger where you're staying at or talk to strangers, okay? Stranger danger does not cover what that could mean to a demigod”, pleaded Leo urgently. “I love you, Perce. Stay save. I'm on my way and I will explain everything to you myself and then I'll... there is some place safe for you.”

“What do you mean with some place safe?”, frowned Percy.

But instead of an answer, the line went dead. He did not like the notion of this. Aside from all the craziness happening all over the place, he disliked that Leo made it sound as though he was going to lock Percy up somewhere for safety. Shaking his head, Percy decided to get some fresh air. Once on the balcony, he got pushed against the arm by Blackjack.

“ _Hey boss, you look sad_ ”, whined the black stallion worried.

“I'm... fine”, sighed Percy, resting his forehead against Blackjack's.

“ _I don't believe you_ ”, huffed Blackjack accusingly, licking Percy's cheek. “ _What's bothering you?_ ”

“I think I'm going crazy...”, mumbled the green-eyed boy softly before laughing darkly. “Said the craze to his talking, winged horse. Fuck. I'm really losing it.”

“ _You're not, boss. Why are you so angry about it? Should I stop talking to you?_ ”

“No!”, exclaimed Percy and shook his head, his fingers clawed into the black mane. “You're one of my best friends and for a while, you were the only one I could talk to.”

“ _Then why does it bother you so much if you don't want it to stop?_ ”

Percy blinked a couple of times and stared at the confused pegasi before laughing. “You're a really clever horse, Blacky. Maybe being insane isn't that bad as long as it's fun?”

“ _So you're not sad anymore?_ ”, whined Blackjack curiously.

“Nope. Not sad. I promise”, smiled Percy, kissing Blackjack's forehead. “Thanks, buddy. You know what? I think I'll try and take another nap before the girls return. They're probably going to demand my full and undivided attention so they can tell me everything about their awesome date.”

“ _Good night, boss_ ”, grinned Blackjack, nudging the Sea Prince.

Sea Prince, huh? Was that what he was now? The son of Poseidon. The son of a Greek god. Shaking his head, he headed back inside. The Greek gods, eh? Weren't those the ones whoring around everywhere and with everyone? Well, he could live with that. And they didn't care about family, eh? If he had that in his mind correctly, then his two hot dream-guys were his cousins, hu? Yawning exhausted from all the information in his head, he crawled back into his bed. The blonde was so heroic and the Italian was such a bad boy. They were like two different sides of a coin and Percy  _needed_ to have this coin, both sides included. He had never desired anyone as much. This was the first time Percy actually craved to have sex. So far, it had only been a deal, a business transaction. Smiling contently into his pillow, he closed his eyes and snuggled up into his blanket.

 

/break\

 

Jason was impatiently pacing their bedroom. He had been going over what he has to say for what felt like hours now. The amount of time him and Nico had been in this dream now. They had been so close to knowing where their gorgeous Sea Prince was. But then the boy had woken up, just like that and left Jason and Nico alone. The couple had woken up again too, to tell their friends what they had seen and heard. And then they had taken so many sleeping pills that Jason was quite afraid he was actually in a coma by now. Now all they could do was pray that Percy would fall asleep again and they would get a chance to convince him.

“For the love of it, please sit down and stop pacing. You're driving me _insane_ here”, growled Nico annoyed and threw his pillow at Jason's head. “It may take hours until he falls asleep again.”

The Ghost Prince frowned worried at his lover. He could see how stiff Jason was. And not in the place where Nico would like to have him stiff. That bloody Roman was being was too overly worried and Roman again, always the leader, always carrying the weight of the world on his shoulder. Sighing softly, he stood up from the bed and walked over to Jason, grabbing the blonde's shoulder and shoving him over to the bed. With some force, he pushed him onto it so Jason came to lay on his stomach. Grunting with a frown, Nico straddled Jason's hips, placing his hands on the blonde's shoulders. The son of Jupiter grunted in protest and tried to push Nico off, but the Ghost Prince was determined, pushing back and starting to knead the stiff back.

“Try fighting me off and I'll lock you into one of my dad's dungeons”, warned Nico.

“What are you doing there?”, muttered Jason with an obvious pout to his voice.

“Giving you a massage because you're short of a heart-attack, Grace”, replied the son of Hades.

“Oh. That looks nice. Please continue.”

The sudden voice startled both of them. Two pairs of eyes turned to stare at the cheekily grinning son of Poseidon, wearing tight jeans and a low-cut, marine blue shirt, his arms crossed behind his back and his head cocked intrigued. Nico disapproved. Why was Percy wearing clothes?

“You're back”, started Jason and tried to push Nico off.

“Seems that way”, grinned Percy and walked over to the bed to sit next to them. “Sex?”

“Really?”, blinked the blonde with a glare. “Seriously? You still think this is a wet dream?”

“Mh... No”, hummed the son of Poseidon slowly and shook his head. “Because I don't like the idea of me going insane. So I guess you need to be real. Furthermore I figured that now that I'm finally free, it should be my turn to take what I want. And I really want you. So... sex?”

Jason glared as he finally managed to turn onto his back, though Nico seemed to refuse to get down from him. Why was that gorgeous thing being so stubborn and irrational? Both of them that is.

“We can't just have sex like that”, grunted the annoyed blonde. “We want more from you than just a meaningless one-night-stand and even though this is a dream, it still feels real.”

“All the reason more to have sex!”, huffed Percy, sounding just as annoyed as he started to peel off his shirt. “Besides, who says a relationship has to start with dates? Dates are boring. It's like the same stuff you do with friends, but you actually just do it to get to the end of the night so you can have sex. Can't we just start with the sex and have everything else later?”

“I like your way of thinking”, smirked Nico, one hand on Jason's chest to hold him down, the other slowly grabbing Percy's neck to pull him into a kiss. “We could start with the sex and sit down and talk once we're through. Jason isn't useful for anything after sex anyway.”

“Shut up. Both of you”, growled the son of Jupiter with a glare. “There are important things-”

“We can't talk about important things”, frowned Percy thoughtful as he rested his chin on Nico's shoulder, baring his neck for better access for Nico. “I had to promise to someone very important to me to not talk about any of this Greek stuff or my whereabouts until he comes to get me.”

“You can't just go with-”, started the blonde with a growl, finally pushing Nico off.

“Don't”, started Percy, his voice surprisingly sharp. “Tell me what I can or can not do. Do not ever do this, blondie. You don't know me, or who is important to me. I know I can trust my baby brother over anyone else, so just don't even try.”

“Okay. No talking”, nodded Nico soothingly, kissing a trail down Percy's torso. “Then we have to have sex, I guess. There's not much else to do and with the amount of pills I took, I doubt I'll wake up for another twenty hours. Need to kill time.”

“So at least one of you is agreeable”, grinned Percy pleased, opening his jeans.

“I don't want this to start that way”, repeated Jason, growing more and more annoyed by the minute. “I want you, Percy. Properly. I want to touch you in the real world and tell you _everything_ and then I want dates before properly making love to you.”

“He's a sap”, frowned Percy and blinked a couple of times. “He really doesn't look that way.”

“It took me _months_ before I got laid the first time”, sighed Nico wistfully, glaring slightly at Jason before turning toward Percy hopefully. “We could make him watch?”

“No”, smirked Percy, freeing himself from Nico to climb on top of Jason and grab the blonde's wrists to push them against the bed-frame. “You're handsome, blondie. But I'm not having you control my life. I think this should be a democracy, what with three people. And Nico and I want sex, so we outvote you. Or... do you _really_ don't want to have sex with us...?”

Percy stood up again, sensationally pushing his jeans and underwear down his long, tanned legs again before climbing back onto the bed and wrapping his arms around Nico's neck. The Italian wrapped his arms around Percy's waist in return, both bowing their heads slightly to look at Jason from beneath their lashes, their eyes clouded with lust and their luscious, naked bodies rubbing against each other, every time their hard cocks met, they moaned in unison. Jason gritted his teeth. This was his test, his temptation. Adam couldn't say no to an apple? Hah. Jason would give everything to trade. Actually no, that would mean giving Percy and Nico away. How was he supposed to turn such a tempting offer down? The way their skin seemed to mingle in their sensual movement, it made Jason so achingly hard. Groaning hoarsely, he nodded slowly.

“I just... think this could be _better_ ”, pointed Jason out and licked his lips. “I'm not dumb enough to turn this down. I'm just thinking dates and everything would give this a better turn.”

“I've never had dates in my life, but I've had sex. I know sex”, frowned Percy slowly, drawing little figures on Nico's chest, hiding his face in the Italian's shoulder. “All my life, I've had sex with people I had no personal attachment to, some I even despised. I respect that you want to romance me properly, but... I just... for years now I wondered what _making love_ could feel like, compared to sex with someone who pays for a couple hours fun with me. I hope _you_ can respect that.”

Jason frowned upset, watching how Nico's grip on Percy tightened. Both of them hated what their pretty Sea Prince had been through and they had sworn to make it up to Percy in any way possible. Looking into Percy's lonely, sad and longing eyes, Jason knew that  _this_ was it.

“Oh, fine”, sighed Jason in defiance. “Come over here, you two horny bastards.”

Both of them grinned broadly at him before attaching themselves to Jason's sides. The blonde blinked surprised as he had two very eager demigods sucking his neck on both sides. This was nice. Leaning back some, he enjoyed the attention he got from his two lovers. Percy's hands were wandering his body, knowing exactly where to be tender and where to be rough.

“How do you want this?”, asked Nico between kisses.

Percy froze where he was attached to one of Jason's hip-bones. “Huh?”

“It's your call”, chuckled the Italian amused, his hands caressing Percy's skin.

“Oh...”, hummed Percy, nodding slowly. “I just... huh... No one ever asked me how I want it.”

“Take your time deciding”, murmured Jason, one hand gliding down Percy's back to cup his ass.

“I want... everything”, decided the Sea Prince with a slight grin. “I want your lips on my cock, blondie. And that cock you kept rubbing against me earlier within me now, bella Italia.”

Licking his lips, Jason sat up to grab Percy's hips tightly. The Sea Prince's cock was pointing his way eagerly, twitching in anticipation. Jason silently swore to himself to make this memorable for the pretty boy. His hands glided around Percy's waist to grab his ass and spread his cheeks. Nico did what he truly was best at. He was worshiping Percy's body with his lips and tongue. It was a talent Jason most valued, the things Nico managed to make Jason feel just with his mouth. Slowly, tenderly preparing Percy, Jason twirled his tongue around the other boy's cock. The son of Poseidon had his fingers clawed into blonde hair as Jason sucked him so well.

“I like this”, decided Percy with a groan. “Oh fuck, oh fuck, oh fuck!”

The way his nails scratched Jason's scalp told the son of Jupiter that Percy was losing control and at the verge of coming. Thrusting his fingers deep, he brushed Percy's prostate as his tongue worked wonders on Percy's cock. Moaning hoarsely, the son of Poseidon came down Jason's throat, collapsing into the blonde's arms bonelessly. The son of Jupiter grinned proudly as he cradled the green-eyed teen close to his heart. Percy was humming contently.

“That was sweet, not completely what I had in mind, but damn, that was good”, purred Percy, stroking down the sweaty torso to nestle at the base of Jason's cock. “Suppose I have to adjust...”

Nico grinned against Percy's skin from where he was kissing Percy's shoulder. His cock was aching to be within the son of Poseidon and that desire grew as Percy suddenly went down on Jason. The Sea Prince pushed Jason down into the mattress hard and engulfed the blonde's member with one single motion. Jason groaned blissfully and melted into the cushions. Grinning amused, Nico watched for a little while. He knew that his blonde loved it when a clever mouth was paying attention to him. Sometimes Nico thought that Jason enjoyed a blowjob way more than real sex.

“Are you going to fuck him any time soon? Because if he keeps wiggling his ass like that, he'll get sea-sick or something like that”, snorted Jason with one raised eyebrow.

Blushing embarrassed, Nico's eyes trailed over from Percy's talented mouth to his ass that was being right in front of him. It seemed Percy was 'subtly' trying to get his attention. Grinning sheepishly, Nico leaned down to place a soft kiss on the round cheek.

“Sorry. Your lips distracted me, mio bello”, grinned the son of Hades.

Grabbing Percy's hips to keep the wiggling behind in place, he slowly eased his hardness into the tight, hot hole. An appreciating grunt escaped his lips as more and more of his cock found itself in that sweet ass. Muffled moans could be heard from where Percy was pleasuring Jason.

“I think what he's trying to say is 'Fuck yes, please harder'”, supplied Jason with a grin.

“You're being so helpful today, mio amore”, snorted Nico and rolled his eyes.

Jason snickered amused as he watched how his Italian lover fucked Percy in that torturous and sensual way that Jason knew all too well. Shuddering slightly, he felt his own orgasm approach as Percy sucked him off while he got to watch Nico fucking Percy. That was nice, very nice indeed. Throwing his head back, Jason closed his eyes in utter bliss as he hit his orgasm. Jason moaned the names of his lovers as he ejaculated into the warm, wet cavern of Percy's mouth.

“Tastes like son of Jupiter alright”, nodded Percy with a thoughtful look. “Yep. Totally.”

“You're silly”, snorted Jason amused and pulled Percy into a kiss, tasting himself on those rosy lips.

He kept kissing the Sea Prince, swallowing all moans and whimpers from the son of Poseidon as Nico kept thrusting deep and hard into the pretty boy. A yelped gasp was the last thing Jason caught, while Nico moaned shamelessly as he came deep within the Sea Prince.

“Fuck”, groaned the Ghost Prince, resting his forehead against Percy's shoulder-blades. “Brilliant.”

“Uhu”, nodded Percy as he curled together in Jason's arms.

Nico, with his arms wrapped around Percy's waist, snuggled up to the Sea Prince, still kissing Percy's shoulders and relishing in the taste of salty skin. It felt good, just holding Percy, knowing him close by them. The fact that his post-orgasmic adrenalin was still pumping through his veins was only highlighting that feeling. He started biting and sucking Percy's neck.

“Tell me something”, prompted the son of Poseidon suddenly.

“I thought you said we shouldn't talk”, grunted Jason, playing with Percy's hair.

“Nothing about Greek gods and stuff”, huffed Percy and rolled his eyes. “About yourselves, you moron. I don't even know your last names. Tell me something personal about you.”

“Oh...”, nodded Nico embarrassed. “Right. Sorry. It's Nico di Angelo, only son of the underworld. I have an older sister, full blood sister which is kind of rare for us demigods, and apparently a younger half-sibling, who is currently being searched for, just like we were searching for you.”

“But that is the part you don't want to talk about”, interrupted Jason with a sigh. “My last name is Grace and like Nico, I too have an older full blood sister. Very bossy full blood sister. I'm kind of... a mayor at the city where we're living, where... we would want you to be living at too. But that's what you don't want to talk about too. So... Nico and I've been dating for quite the while now, because we're the same level of power, of being avoided or worshiped by others. Well, that and the fact that our sisters are dating. Believe me, that is really awkward sometimes.”

“Tell me about the place you're from, without the godly stuff”, ordered Percy softly, drowsily.

“It's beautiful”, smiled Nico thoughtful. “It's a big city where our kind lives in peace. Regular city, just not for regulars. We have four mayors, we live in a democracy and we care for each other. If a demigod doesn't have a place to stay, or even the money to afford one, we catch them, find them a place to live. Me and Jason, we're living with our sisters, for example. And your friends are sharing apartments too now that they've moved there.”

“My... friends...?”, yawned Percy, trying to fight sleep.

 

/break\

 

There were questions he now needed to ask, but sleep claimed him and just as falling asleep had brought him to the dream, falling asleep in the dream woke him again. He frowned upset as he looked around in his hotel room, not finding either of his new lovers. Running one hand through his hair, he stood to go to the bathroom because of something sticky between his legs. As he passed the mirror, he saw the hickeys Nico had left scattered along his collar. A small smile played on his lips as he entered the shower. So that dream truly had been true. A weird concept. Though now Percy was really looking forward to seeing Leo again. Not just to see him, but also to get a proper explanation and to get the 'permission' to tell Jason and Nico where he was so he could claim them in real life too. And ask them what they had been talking about concerning his friends.


	12. Their Diamond in the Rough

11\. Their Diamond in the Rough

 

Leo stared down at his cellphone in determination. He would go to his brother and he would explain everything to him. He knew his mission was to find the child of the underworld, but that seemed so unimportant at the moment. All that mattered was Percy. Percy was a child of one of the Big Three. Percy was in danger. But Percy wasn't allowed to be in danger.

“I need to get to London”, whispered Leo determined and grabbed his backpack.

The others were downstairs, talking and laughing loudly. How was he supposed to get past them? How was he supposed to get to London? That was in freaking Europe! He couldn't take Festus, he still had some repairs to do first and that would be taking too much time. He didn't have an own pegasus and he couldn't take Balance, because that stubborn horse only answered to Ethan's call. Mrs. O'Leary would be an option, but Leo had never shadow-traveled without a child of the underworld at his side, so the thought made him feel uneasy. Frowning upset, he collapsed on his bed again, his bag full of clothes closely hugged to his chest.

“H—How am I supposed to get there...?”, whispered Leo with a crestfallen look.

“I think I can help you with that.”

The Latino fell over in shock, staring wide-eyed at the butt-naked Asian in front of him. His heart sped up in disbelief. That was Frank. _His_ Frank. Well, not his, but Hazel's, but it was the human Frank that had been haunting his dreams for too many days now. That's it. This must have been a dream. Again. But he didn't remember falling asleep. Scooting away on the bed, he tried to bring enough distance between himself and the naked man, because that nakedness was very distracting and causing him to not properly think about the why and how.

“W—Why are you naked...?”

Seemed to be the most important question. After all, who cared how or why Frank was there. The naked-part was far more curious and interesting. Cocking his head, Leo stared at the head of Frank's cock and licked his lips hungrily. Shaking his head, he tried to concentrate.

“Your mind works in strange ways”, laughed Frank amused and shook himself.

Suddenly, instead of the human Frank, there was his new dog sitting in front of him, grunting at him. The dog shook himself and changed shape again, revealing a naked Frank once more.

“I'm going crazy”, observed Leo and nodded slowly. “Completely crazy.”

“You are not, firebug”, whispered the Canadian and sat down next to Leo, cupping his cheek tenderly. “I'm a demigod. A son of Mars. And I hold the power to shift my shape into that of any animal I can think of. I had been with you as a dog to keep an eye on you.”

“Y—You're... a demigod”, repeated Leo slowly, staring at the nakedness next to him. “D—Does this mean my... assumption is right...? Hazel is the daughter of Pluto we're looking for...”

“She is”, nodded Frank slowly, averting his eyes. “It's why we fled when we first met you. I recognized the scent of your companions. The ones that had been chasing after us. We had to flee. But we couldn't stay away from you, so we trailed after you.”

“Why were you running away from us?”, asked Leo completely thrown off.

“You _hunt_ demigods”, grunted Frank displeased. “Isn't that the reason you cried for your brother?”

“No!”, exclaimed Leo and shook his head so vigorously, Frank feared it may fall off. “I cried for my brother because he has been through a lot and I wish for him to live in peace, but the life of a demigod is a dangerous one and knowing that he is a demigod made me sad, because it means he will never have the normal life I wished for him! But I am also glad, because I can take him home with me, I can have him close again. He can live in Olympolis with me and the others.”

“What is this... Olympolis?”, inquired the son of Mars.

“A safe haven for demigods, protected with magical borders from monsters, led by demigods and Chiron and Lupa, the trainers of demigods”, replied Leo hastily. “The only safe place on the planet for our kind! The gods, they are quarreling. The old ones that is. A—And my friends and I have been send to collect the child of Poseidon and the child of Pluto so they will be safe.”

“I'm sorry, but I don't believe you”, said Frank firmly, shaking his head slowly. “Demigods disappear wherever the Search is. There was a bordello with children of Aphrodite that we... Hazel and I, we visited it before. The son of death and his companions had visited it and now it's gone. All the demigods are just _gone_. Explain that to me, firebug.”

Leo blushed slightly at the nickname. “It's... not _gone_. They're not gone. They have been brought to the safety of Olympolis. In the outside world, monsters will chase demigods and kill them and eat them. The borders protect. They're safe. I—I can show you! Do you... Do you remember one specific from the bordello? I can let you speak to them!”

“The green-eyed boy Hazel and I enjoyed back then...”, drawled Frank thoughtful, blinking confused at the frozen look on Leo's face. “What is it? Can't hold that promise of yours?”

“T—That's my _brother_ ”, hissed Leo with a betrayed glare. “You slept with my brother!”

“Oh...”, was all Frank could mutter, cursing beneath his breath. “Uh, there was that lovely blonde girl with the startling blue eyes, Silena her name was, I think. Can you contact her?”

He needed to distract Leo from _that_ thought. This was the worst approach possible. Hey, I like you, I slept with your brother. That one wouldn't work, not ever. Leo was gritting his teeth, a heartbroken look in his eyes as he produced a little pocket mirror that upon opening, produced a rainbow.

“Silena Beauregard, Olympolis”, announced Leo firmly.

The rainbow flickered and indeed, the beautiful blonde girl Frank remembered from his visit in the Purple Oyster appeared, wearing an apron and having the... bouncer from the Purple Oyster wrapped around her? Frank blinked curiously and cocked his head.

“The adorable Latino!”, smiled Silena delighted. “Hello, Leo! What's up?”

“Just... trying to convince a demigodly friend of mine that Olympolis is safe. That's Frank.”

“Uh, hello”, nodded Frank and waved at the happy couple.

“Hello, Frank. Nice to meet you”, said Silena with a short nod. “You know, Olympolis is quite the lovely place to live. Finally somewhere safe. But if you don't believe Leo, then all my words will fall to deaf ears. Look at the adorable thing and tell me, do you believe he's capable of lying?”

Frank frowned and turned toward the 'adorable thing'. The adorable thing really didn't look capable of lying to anyone. Sighing slowly, he took the pocket mirror from Leo and closed it without another word before pulling the Latino close. Leo yelped surprised.

“I give you the benefit of a doubt because you're you”, stated Frank softly, his arms around Leo's waist. “And I will help you get to London. Under one, well, two conditions.”

“Okay”, nodded Leo hastily. “Anything, I just need to speak to my brother. What is it?”

“You can not tell your companions. We will leave without them knowing”, declared Frank, drawing circles on Leo's hips which had the boy squirm in his grip. “And you will stay with us. With Hazel and me. I still don't trust them. You will stay with Hazel and me so we can keep you safe.”

“Okay”, nodded the Latino, not pausing for a second.

“You're ready to abandon your friends, those you call family, that easily?”, questioned Frank.

“I trust in my abilities to be convincing”, grinned Leo cheekily and leaned in some to whisper into the Canadian's ear. “I'll get you and Hazel to come with me to Olympolis and that solves that.”

“I wouldn't be so sure about that”, chuckled Frank, caressing Leo's thighs suggestively. “Though I can see you trying... I would very much enjoy seeing you trying.”

 

/break\

 

“Well, Arion, that was a waste of time”, sighed Hazel disappointed.

The horse next to her whined in agreement. The two of them were sitting in one of the rooms of the Purple Oyster. A completely vacant, even dusty bordello that had not seen a visitor or someone to clean it, ever since it had been closed. She had even passed the police tape still.

“We could have as well stayed with Frank and spied on Leo”, mumbled Hazel with a pout.

“Well, if you stay where you are, Frank and I will come and get you!”

The daughter of Pluto jumped slightly in surprise, which earned her a ringing laugh from the image in front of her. A rainbow and in its midst was the broadly grinning face of her firebug. The boy was waving at her excitedly. She stared stunned, unable to comprehend what was happening.

“I—I... Leo...?”, stuttered Hazel wide-eyed, tilting her head. “What is this...?”

“Frank said you're at the Purple Oyster. We're on our way to get you! We're heading to London!”, announced Leo with a broad grin. “Just stay where you are and we'll be with you soon.”

The daughter of Pluto nodded numbly as the image disappeared. What kind of magic was this? And why were Frank and Leo on their way? What had Frank done?! Couldn't she leave him alone for one weekend without him going and exposing them?! Well, at least he would be bringing a cute little firebug with him. Hazel could live with that. Sighing, she looked around.

“I guess you can leave, if you want to. I will be waiting here for my boys”, sighed Hazel softly. “I know you're not good at being coped up. But thank you for your help, Arion.”

The horse whined before it disappeared, leaving only the whirling dust behind as it ran off.

 

/break\

 

Leo was positively glowing from where he was clinging to Frank's neck. Frank's dragon-neck. Frank was a dragon. A mighty, giant, scaled, bright red and beautiful dragon. A real, proper dragon. Not like Festus. No metal. Real flesh and scales, warmth and huffs of flames. It was amazing. Though he tried not to dwell on the fact that he was practically clinging to a naked Frank's neck.

This shape-changing was really fascinating. He had made Frank do the dog about five times before the son of Mars had glared hard at him and told him that they didn't have time for this. Still, he had agreed five times before, which made Leo grin slightly, because it meant he had a certain amount of charm or control over the strong Roman. Frank had shifted into a mighty dragon outside the window and Leo had climbed onto his head. He wasn't sure how, but they managed to actually be stealthy about this. He hoped their disappearance would go unnoticed for a little while longer, give them enough time to get Hazel and leave for Europe before the others would follow.

“I can't wait to show you and Hazel Olympolis”, whispered Leo. “I don't know where you will stay, but I'll make sure it'll be an apartment close to where Luke and I are living.”

There is a dangerous and dark rumble coming from deep within Frank's chest, shaking Leo. The son of Hephaestus gave a cheeky grin in return, rubbing his face against the warmth of Frank's neck. He had been constantly talking about Olympolis and about his friends, the other demigods, the way they ruled together and went on quests together. After only a short while did Leo notice that Frank reacted different to the names. Bianca and Alabaster gained him a content rumble, as though Frank had accepted them as Leo's protectors, in a way. Whenever Leo would mention Luke though, the dragon beneath him would grow furious. Just as Luke's proximity had caused the dog-version of Frank to bark and growl and bite. Now knowing that the dog had been Frank all along, Leo had used his time on Frank's back to test a theory. And all that growling had made the conclusion quite obvious. Frank was jealous of Luke. The Latino wasn't dumb, he had witnessed jealousy before, often before. And the way the son of Mars had been touching him before they left didn't leave much room for interpretation either. It was quite obvious. Frank liked him. That was a good start, now he just needed to determine if Hazel shared that interest in him, or if Frank had been following him on his own because the two of them didn't agree on this.

“Fra—ank”, whispered Leo in a soft whine, gaining the dragon's full attention (he had gotten awfully good at reading dragon-body-language). “Did you stalk me and sleep in a bed with me and _shower_ with me because you... want me...? A—And did you come on your own, without Hazel, because you have been fighting? I don't want to be the reason why you fight.”

He had expected to get a rumble or grunt or maybe even a little spitfire. What he did not expect was for Frank to suddenly land, on some kind of clearing somewhere – Leo had no idea where they were at the moment at all. The dragon shook, nearly throwing Leo off, and shrank. The Latino yelped as he fell, more or less, just to find himself in Frank's strong arms.

“You are a tease”, accused the son of Mars with a dark glare. “Don't think I didn't notice what you've been doing back there. You keep whispering words in my ear in that sweet voice of yours, trying to convince me that Olympolis should be our destination, our destiny. You keep testing me with the different names, with this blasted trickster-brat.”

“Oh... you noticed that...”, mumbled Leo, now a little embarrassed.

“Yes”, snorted Frank and rolled his eyes, shifting Leo a little until the Latino wrapped his arms around Frank's neck. “But don't think stupid thoughts, firebug. Hazel and I are not fighting, especially not about you. The only thing we'd fight about concerning you would be who'd get to have you first. You are something we wholly agree on.”

Frank stared him dead in the eyes and those eyes were honest and full of love and loyalty. The Canadian made a move to shift, but Leo stopped him by resting a firm hand on Frank's shoulder. Raising one eyebrow, the son of Mars stared down at Leo questioningly.

“C—Can I... have a kiss then...?”, asked the Latino in a soft voice.

“You are astonishingly cute”, grunted Frank and leaned down to catch Leo's lips in a soft and short kiss. “But now we _really_ need to continue our journey. I haven't been apart from Hazel for that long ever since I met her. And I'm sure she can't wait to claim you either.”

“W—When you say claim...?”, started Leo slowly and blushed involuntarily.

The dirty smirk Frank gave him was speaking volumes.

 

/break\

 

Hazel was bored out of her mind. She was laying on one of the beds, different things sprawled all around her. After about half an hour of sitting and waiting for her boys, she had gotten bored so she went on and looked through the cabins. There were some fancy clothes she had tried on. And some toys she _really_ wanted to try. After all, the little imp had called to say he was on his way, so she should better prepare a nice... welcoming for the cute thing. Smirking wickedly, she got more comfortable, staring up at the mirrors above the bed.

“Hazel? Hazel? Where are you? Are you here?”, called Frank's booming voice from somewhere.

“In the upper rooms. Follow your nose, love”, chuckled Hazel teasingly. “Did you bring me something nice? Something to play with? Something delicious to devour.”

“I did. And it's very flustered”, snickered Frank, his voice coming closer.

“O—Of course I'm flustered!”, exclaimed Leo's voice a bit high-pitched. “All the things you promised me on our way here! That is _a lot_ to take in!”

“You already showed him your cock? I thought we agreed on doing that together!”

“I was talking about the _information_ , not the—Argh!”, hissed the Latino embarrassed.

“It's fun to fluster him”, smiled Frank as the two boys entered. “Wow. You look... stunning.”

“I know!”, smirked Hazel, staring at Leo suggestively. “So please tell me I'm not making a fool of myself here. Tell me you brought him here so we can play.”

“You can do anything you want to me”, gasped Leo without even realizing it.

The Latino's eyes were wide as he stared at the gorgeous girl in front of him. Hazel was wearing black lace stockings, a bra that really did not cover anything but pushed it up so nicely that Leo feared to die of a nosebleed and a dark red strap-on. Her golden eyes were sparkling with lust and anticipation as she looked him up and down. He was only pulled out of his thoughts when suddenly Frank was pulling on his clothes. Blushing brightly, Leo turned to stare up at Frank.

“I told you we would be getting to the claiming now”, whispered the Canadian.

Within seconds, Leo found himself naked and thrown at Hazel like a doll or treat. He really planned on protesting, because he barely knew them and they were ready to devour him, but the predator-like look in Hazel's eyes, the way she licked her lips and the way her hand caressed his thighs made it really hard to think at all. Gasping slightly, he leaned back on the bed as Hazel's hand wandered down some more, slipping between his his legs and starting to tease him.

“T—This is really going too fast”, protested Leo weakly, knowing fully well he wanted it.

“We've been stalking you for weeks, picturing doing this”, growled Hazel as she sat up between his legs, moving her fingers in and out of Leo's tightness. “And you are a _tease_. No more teasing.”

The Latino nodded numbly. He had been fantasizing about them since their first encounter too. And he too was only a hormonal teenager who had to listen to (way too detailed) sex-stories from his friends for years now. The urge to try, to try with those people that seemed to care such a great deal about him, it was overwhelming. Just as the sensation Hazel was putting him through at the moment. His mind was so clouded and hazy with lust and expectations that he nearly missed how Hazel replaced her fingers with the strap-on. Leo hissed in pain, even though the thing was relatively small. He was, after all, a virgin. He was just grateful that Hazel had, aside from pretty clothes and toys, also found lube somewhere. Whimpering slightly, he wrapped his arms around her for support and contact. Her rhythm was steady and slow, cautious. And her voice was soothing and enchanting at the same time. She made love to him until he was fully hard, gasping and moaning and longing for more. And just as he was ready to come, she pulled out again, smirking at him teasingly. Gathering him in her arms, she kissed him and caressed his heated skin while Frank took the now vacant spot between his legs. Leo flushed a little brighter at the prospect of being impaled on this way bigger and way more real thing. But the look in Frank's eyes was – aside from animalistic and aroused – also reassuring. Somewhere deep in his heart, Leo knew that he could trust those two completely. And he already did, as scary as the thought was.

“Ours”, whispered Frank into his ear, before his lips slid down to work on Leo's neck.

Hazel was attached to the other side of Leo's neck, which was put together, quite the pleasant experience for Leo. Moaning hoarsely, the Latino leaned back, resting his head on Hazel's shoulder as he enjoyed his lovers' touches. Frank was less careful and slow than Hazel, which, so Leo guessed, was probably the reason why Hazel had prepared him so thoroughly. There was something primal, instinctual and animalistic to Frank's touch and movement and Leo found himself quite enjoying it. Hazel's delicate hands teased his nipples and jerked his cock while the Canadian was rutting him like an animal. They were so different in their motions and yet, it was just perfect.

“Oh gods, oh gods, oh gods”, chanted Leo, praying that this would happen over and over again.

With a last 'oh gods' on his lips did he come hard, gasping and panting even harder. Frank grunted pleased at the tight feeling of Leo's contracting muscles, thrusting even deeper, if possible. Hazel hummed contently, gathering the cum from Leo's stomach and feeding it to him with a grin. A bright blush laid on Leo's cheeks, not just from the thorough fucking, but also from the embarrassment. It took Frank only another couple of minutes before he followed Leo's orgasm, bringing their lips together in a passionate kiss as he filled the Latino. The three of them curled together in exhaustion, content with just holding each other, at least for now.

“So...”, started Leo with a cheeky grin. “Am I a better lay than my brother?”

“Right. We have _much_ to explain to you Hazel”, grunted Frank upon her inquisitive look, before turning to the Latino and kissing him again. “And _you_ are a much more enjoyable lay.”


	13. The Little Big Three

12\. The Little Big Three

 

Percy was laying on his bed, a thoughtful expression on his face as he ran his fingers through soft curls. Curls that belonged to the Latino that laid curled together on his lap, sound asleep. He could hear Frank, Hazel, Piper and Annabeth in the other room, discussing godly matters.

Leo and his two partners – oh, Percy still had to chew those two out for corrupting his innocent baby brother – had dropped by two hours ago and after half an hour of just laying in each other's arms, crying and clinging onto each other, Leo had started to tell all those tales and myths about gods and their children, explaining a whole new society to Percy, Annabeth and Piper. Things about a centaur and a wolf, a secret city, a pending war of old deities and the Search. Percy was relieved to know that Jason and Nico seemed to be friends with Leo. He was even more relieved when Leo called the couple and told them the exact location they were. A giddy feeling filled Percy's heart at the prospect of seeing them again, live and not in a dream. Now, while all of them were waiting for Jason, Nico and their crew to reach London, Leo had fallen asleep in Percy's lap. Exhaustion from the long flight and drained now that the adrenaline was gone. Percy was taking his time sorting his thoughts. He was a demigod. A son of one of the Big Three, the most important gods ever. According to Frank's nose – which was still freaking Percy out – Annabeth and Piper were demigods too. A daughter of Athena and a daughter of Aphrodite. Right now, the two girls were in the other room with the couple (two thirds of the threesome? Percy wasn't so sure on the relationship-status of his baby brother at the moment), getting the Demigod 101.

 

/break\

 

“London. He's in London”, mumbled Nico as he threw the last piece of clothes into his bag.

“And soon, we will be there too”, smiled Jason, resting a calming hand on Nico's shoulder.

“Are you two quite finished having a boner over the sea brat yet?”, yelled Clarisse.

“We really need to get going”, added Reyna irritated. “Reaching London will eat too much time anyway, we don't have any more to waste. Do you have everything?”

Lou and Chris were leading the pegasi in, glaring expectantly at the two sons of the Big Three.

“We're not coming with you”, answered the son of Jupiter with a shake of his head.

“Really? Even though you've been so eager to find the lad?”, questioned Lou skeptically.

“That's just it”, nodded Nico and grabbed his boyfriend's hand. “We'll shadow-travel there. Now that we know where he is, I want to be with him as soon as possible.”

“Lovesick puppies”, noted Chris beneath his breath, grinning slightly. “Get going.”

Jason gave the other boy a grin and a short nod before wrapping his arms around his lover. He hated shadow-traveling, out of obvious reasons. The shadow-realm was the domain of Hades and the children of the Big Three didn't do well in the realms of each other. He knew for a fact that Nico hated flying and neither of them could actually swim because they were both afraid of water. Grumbling slightly, Jason clung to his boyfriend, his eyes tightly closed as his heart raced a mile per minute. It made him feel like prey on the open field, with hunters surrounding him. He hated it.

“Sh, Jay. You'll get a heart-attack before we reach Percy”, warned Nico, caressing Jason's hair.

“Oh, shut up”, muttered the son of Jupiter with a slight pout. “Just get us out of here.”

The Italian laughed darkly, his arms around Jason's waist sliding lower to tease his lover. With a final squeeze of Jason's ass did Nico obey and leave the shadows. The air got knocked out of Jason as he found himself back in the real world. Gasping relieved, he tightened his grip on Nico.

“Damn, no one is ever going to believe me what a girl you can be”, snickered Nico and rolled his eyes. “Now please stop trying to break my ribs, will you?”

“Sorry”, muttered Jason with the faintest hint of a blush, letting go of Nico.

“Where the fuck did you two come from?!”, exclaimed Percy surprised.

“Mh...? What's happening...?”, slurred Leo as he got woken up by his big brother, slowly sitting up and staring over at Jason and Nico. “Oh, you shadow-traveled here? That's nice. Wait. You two, you tried to defile my brother! Get out of his bedroom, you pervs!”

“Brother?”, chorused Nico and Jason confused, staring at the two boys on the bed.

“Foster brother”, clarified Percy with a blush, nudging Leo. “How about you go and check on your two... companions and leave me to talk to Jason and Nico alone?”

“No! You just want sex!”, objected the Latino with a glare.

“Oh, don't start”, warned the son of Poseidon and rolled his eyes. “Don't think I didn't notice your limp, Leo Valdez. If you don't want me to give Zhang and Levesque the embarrassing big brother speech, you're getting out of this room right now and give me a moment with my boyfriends.”

Within a second, Leo was out of the room, leaving Jason and Nico quite confused. At first, they had been outraged to find Leo and Percy together in bed, but right now, they were just confused. What was Percy talking about? How were they brothers? Where were the others? All those questions were literally knocked out of them as Percy collided with them, one arm wrapped around each of them.

“I'm so glad you're here, really here”, gasped Percy, his voice filled with relief. “Mine.”

“Yours, eh?”, chuckled Jason amused, running his fingers through black hair.

“Yes. Mine. I thought we established that last night”, grinned Percy and leaned up to kiss the blonde before turning to also kiss the Italian. “After all, we seem to be meant to be. The sons of the Big Three, eh? You two are meant to be mine. Or that was at least the gist of what Leo had been telling me for the last two hours. That and that I will be moving to a place called Olympolis?”

“Only if you want to”, confirmed Nico with a short nod.

“Is there... any room left with you two?”, asked Percy, staring up at them with hopeful eyes.

“You... want to move in with us?”, asked Jason surprised, blinking a couple of times.

“Only if you want to”, shrugged Percy, biting his lower lip unsure. “I mean, I just... Leo said he's already living in a quite full apartment and... My friends are paired up nicely too, as far as Leo told me, what with Drew, Calypso, Mitchell and Lacy sharing an apartment and... Annabeth and Piper surely want to move in with Charles and Silena. I don't... want to live with some strangers. I don't do well with strangers. Can I... stay with you? I'm safe with you.”

“We are going to take good care of you, the way you deserve it”, whispered Jason, kissing Percy's neck. “You'll be safe with us. No guy is ever going to hurt you again, not while you're with us.”

“That sounds nice”, hummed Percy pleased, rubbing his nose against Nico's collar. “Sex?”

“Does everything always lead to sex with you?”, sighed Jason and shook his head.

“You're hot and this time around, you're _real_ ”, grinned Percy broadly. “So... sex?”

 

/break\

 

“Demigods. We're demigods”, whispered Annabeth, for the twentieth time at least.

“Does she always take that long to understand things?”, sighed Hazel annoyed.

At least Leo was back with them. With her arms wrapped around Leo who sat between her and Frank did she stare at the two Greek girls opposite them. The native American glared at her.

“She's not slow, she already understood”, huffed Piper and rolled her eyes. “It's just a lot to take in.”

“I know”, nodded Hazel, her eyes softening. “I'm sorry, okay?”

“Will you come with us?”, asked Leo, tilting his head.

“Our friends are at this place you talked about”, grunted Annabeth with a glare. “Percy is surely going to come with you, if the noises next door are any indication. Of course we'll come.”

“And what about you?”, asked Leo, turning to stare at Frank and Hazel with his best puppy-eyes.

Frank gritted his teeth, unable to deny those large, begging eyes. “We will. To see for ourselves. But if this turns out to be a hoax, I'll be shouldering you and carrying you off far away from there.”

“Deal”, grinned the Latino amused and leaned up to kiss the Canadian. “You'll like it. I know.”

 

/break\

 

Reyna was annoyed. It took way too long to reach the hotel in London. Sometimes she wished she too could shadow-travel. This was it, according to Leo's call, both the missing children of the Big Three were there. This quest would finally end, they would finally get to go home. They had contacted Bianca, Thalia and their search to tell them to go home. They would wrap this up, bring the daughter of Pluto and the son of Poseidon to Olympolis, while the others could return home right away. No need for all twelve of them to go to London. It would also take too long for the others to travel all the way from Canada to England. None of them had that kind of patience anymore. Running one hand through her dark, long hair she clung to Scipio as they neared their destination. Soon, she would get to return home, to sleep in her own bed again, have the mundane, everyday life of Olympolis back. Now to collect those missing demigods...

What she had not been prepared for were the two girls greeting them as they finally reached the hotel suit. A native American, rough beauty, her arms around the slim waist of a gorgeous blonde. From that moment on, Reyna was only mildly aware of her surroundings. Her focus was on the large breasts of the blonde and the perky ass of the native American. Annabeth and Piper, as she learned. A daughter of Athena and a daughter of Aphrodite. Hers to bring to Olympolis, that much was for sure. She tried to focus on the conversation again.

“What do you mean Nico, Jason and Percy are _gone_?”, grunted Clarisse displeased.

“They must have shadow-traveled back home once it got more... steamy. The walls here are quite thin and I doubt Percy wanted for us to listen in on them”, shrugged Leo awkwardly.

“Well, we still have a transportation problem”, pointed Lou out and glared.

That much was true. Clarisse had her pegasus Fighter, Chris had his pegasus Trickster, Reyna had her pegasus Scipio and Lou had taken Nico's pegasus here, because she only owned an unicorn, not made to travel over the sea. Jason's horse was a special case and could only be used by a child of the sky. Which left them with no additional transportation to bring five more demigods back to the states. Chris, Reyna and Clarisse nodded slowly, understanding the situation.

“Well, we do have a pegasus of our own”, pointed Piper out and whistled, luring Blackjack inside.

The living room was by now quite crowded, but still the beautiful black pegasus obeyed and nudged her shoulder once he was inside. Smiling at him, she ran her fingers through his mane.

“Helpful, but still not quite the solution”, sighed Reyna. “Sure, each of us can take one more on the back of their horses, in theory, but... then we would slow down. This is a problem.”

“We have a horse too”, offered Hazel after a silent conversation with her boyfriend. “Arion. He's the fasted runner, he can run over the water. If one of you two takes this pegasus and the other takes Arion, you can return to the states. Me and Leo will travel with Frank.”

“What is 'travel with Frank' supposed to mean?”, grunted Clarisse skeptically.

“He's a shape-shifter!”, announced Leo with a broad grin. “We got here on his back! He was a dragon. That's really awesome, you know? Oh, this is a good solution! Yes, yes! Let's get home!”

 

/break\

 

Percy moaned hoarsely where he was laying beneath Jason, with the blonde's cock up his ass. He had been able to hear the conversation between his friends and his brother next door, there had been no way that he was going to have sex with such thin walls between him and Leo. This traveling-through-shadows that Nico did was really handy, because within seconds, Percy found himself in a bed that smelt very much like Nico and Jason. The blonde above him whimpered wantonly as he was feeling the tightness of Percy around his own cock while Nico's hardness was thrusting deep inside of him. The Italian was trailing kisses along Jason's shoulders while fucking him.

“I could totally get used to this”, panted Jason blissfully. “This is... interesting.”

“Yeah, that way you'll finally stop bitching whenever I top”, smirked Nico, biting Jason's neck.

Percy tuned them out in favor of enjoying the amazing feeling of his own orgasm coupled with Jason's warmth filling him. Collapsing on top of him, Jason sealing Percy's lips in a siring kiss while Nico was still fucking him hard. Once the Italian came deep within his blonde lover did both of them lay down on either side of the Sea Prince, kissing his neck and leaving marks.

“So...”, drawled Percy as he looked around curiously. “This is my new home, yeah?”

“This is your new home”, confirmed Nico, twirling one of Percy's perky nipples teasingly.

“Stop it”, muttered Percy, batting the hand away.

“Why?”, huffed the son of Hades with a pout. “I want your ass too.”

“You just had my ass. Am I not enough for you anymore?”, grunted Jason in mock irritation.

“Your ass is wonderful”, assured Nico amused, kissing his blonde. “But I want his too.”

“How about we delay that to a later date and get showered for now? I want you to bring me to Silena and the others, I need to see that they're alright and then I want to see the city.”

“That doesn't sound like fun”, pouted the son of Jupiter and shook his head.

“How about a compromise?”, suggested Nico with a smirk. “Shower sex?”

 

/break\

 

Leo had to admit, he enjoyed laying pressed against the scales of dragon-Frank, with Hazel's body covering his, holding him close. That was nice. But as nice as it was, he was still very relieved as they landed in Olympolis. Stretching his aching limbs, he watched in amazement how Frank transformed back to his human self. Within seconds, Frank and Hazel were on either side of him, staring wearily at all the strangers surrounding them. At least, they were strangers to them.

“Leo Valdez, who do you bring with you there?”, asked Chiron curiously.

“Hazel Levesque, daughter of Pluto. And Frank Zhang, son of Mars”, introduced Leo, shifting some. “This is Chiron, the trainer I told you about. And this is Lupa.”

The shewolf next to the centaur gave a low, warning growl as she circle the three demigods. Frank growled back and pushed Hazel and Leo behind him. Not that it was very effective. Because after only a moment, Leo got stolen away from them and found himself half hugged and half strangled by Luke Castellan. Frank's growl grew darker at that.

“You stupid idiot, how could you leave on your own?! Anything could have happened!”, snapped Luke and shook Leo irritated. “You reckless moron, what if you had gotten hurt or worse?!”

“Luke, leave the brat alone”, interrupted Octavian and rolled his eyes, grabbing Luke around the waist and pulling him away from the Latino. “He can take care of himself.”

He glared at Leo, his eyes clearly showing jealousy and irritation. The Latino blushed and tried to hide behind Frank. He knew how much the augur hated him because Luke was constantly trying to get into his pants. Sometimes, Leo truly questioned their odd relationship. But seeing how Luke willingly leaned back against Octavian, Leo momentarily forgotten, it made Leo grin. They loved each other, as complicated and odd as their relationship may seem to an outsider.

“Let me show you home”, smiled Leo, grabbing Frank's and Hazel's hands to pull them along.

 

/break\

 

Percy laughed softly as he patted Blackjack's muzzle. The black pegasus had flied over to the balcony of Jason, Nico and Percy's room right away after Annabeth had climbed down from him. Percy smiled and waved the blonde that had just landed at the balcony of the apartment opposite of theirs, being greeted by a hug from Silena and a pat from Charles. Somehow, he wanted to get over there, but Percy had already spoken to their friends and Piper and Annabeth deserved to have their friends to themselves for now. Jason and Nico stepped up behind Percy, on either side of him, staring curiously over to the daughter of Athena, waving her too before she entered the apartment.

“ _Boss_ ”, whined Blackjack, rubbing his head against Percy. “ _Don't ever leave me alone with the horny one. He has tried to mount me about three times! And not in a kind or sweet way._ ”

“M—My pegasus got sexually harassed by that speedster”, muttered Percy as he noticed the inquisitive looks from Jason and Nico (most likely because of his stunned expression). “How do I keep Blacky safe from that perv? I can't let him roam the city if Arion is going to try anything!”

Jason looked thoughtful for a second before he put his fingers to his lips and whistled loudly. Sea-green eyes widened astonished as a small thunder-cloud gathered in front of their balcony and soon formed into a solid horse. A beautiful stallion, midnight blue, nearly black.

“That's my companion, Tempest”, introduced Jason. “Tempest, I have a favor to ask of you. It seems our newest citizens brought a... perverted horse with them. His name is Arion.”

“ _The son of Poseidon_?”, sneered Tempest unimpressed. “ _I met him before_.”

“Good, then you know who to look out for”, smiled Percy brilliantly, not pleased that the horny horse seemed to be his brother (he did not want any details about that). “Will you help my friend?”

Percy stepped aside a little as Tempest cocked his head curiously. The storm-spirit stepped closer, sniffing Blackjack curiously before pushing his head against Blackjack's, the pegasus whining.

“ _Don't worry, my black beauty, I'll protect you_ ”, growled Tempest.

Blackjack turned wide-eyed to Percy, who gave him a small, encouraging smile. “Go with him.”

The black pegasus lifted off, the storm-spirit right next to him. Percy chuckled slightly to himself as he leaned back against Jason's chest, holding onto Nico's hand. For the first time since his mother had passed away and Leo got taken away from him did he feel as though he was finally home.

“I think I love you”, whispered Percy. “And I think I'm ready. For whatever is about to come.”

 

/break\

 

“If we're supposed to live here, then you will move in with us”, declared Frank darkly.

He had his arms wrapped around his naked partners. The petite Latino hummed delighted, stretching some as he leaned up to kiss Frank softly. Hazel grinned amused, running her fingers over sweaty skin, teasing the exhausted and delicious Latino. Leo arched into her touch.

“Okay, you big, jealous loaf”, grinned Leo amused. “You don't want me living with Luke, mh?”

“Not a chance”, grunted Hazel and shook her head. “You're ours now and if you want for us to stay here, you better entertain us well. Speaking of entertainment... What is your opinion on spankings?”

The Latino's answer was a dark, crimson blush, making Frank and Hazel laugh loudly.

 

/break\

 

“So... we arrived just in time for war?”, asked Annabeth softly, blushing slightly.

After meeting up with their friends again, Annabeth and Piper had found themselves seeking the gorgeous Roman out that had found them in London. Reyna nodded timidly from where she sat opposite of them, a dark expression on her beautiful face.

“This is the beginning of dark times. But together, we will pull through”, assured Reyna softly.

 

_~*~ The End ~*~_


End file.
